Scottish National Dictionary (1700–)
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First published 1960 (SND Vol. V). Includes material from the 2005 supplement.
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.
Quotation dates: 1843, 1909-2005
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KEEVEE, n., adj. Also keevie, -y, kevee, quivvy. [′ki:′vi:]
I. n. Attention, alertness, vigilance. Gen. in phr. on the kevee, on the alert or look-out, in high spirits, worked up, having a bee in one's bonnet (Slg. 1825 Jam.; Abd., Ags., Lth., Ayr., Kcb. 1959; Uls. 1970s; Sh., Bnff., Ayr. 2000s).Slk. 1843 W. Crozier Cottage Muse (1847) 56:
If good Mess John look o'er his nest, In haly keevy, Wi' the warst words that he's posses't, He'll rail an' deave ye.em.Sc. 1912 W. Cuthbertson Dykeside Folk 177:
Ye get the picters dune for ye, . . . an' then you staun' aside them wi' yer keevie on the grund, an' wait for the bawbees.Abd.9 1942:
Sandy wis fairly on the kevee the nicht, dancin' a'maist his ain hicht.Abd. 1955 W. P. Milne Eppie Elrick xxx.:
A wis o' the quivvy a' the time 'e Sairjin wis i' the hoose. Sc. 2003 Scots Tung Wittins 116 Jul :
Uphauders o Scots shuid aye be on the kee-vee tae mak shuir that the uiss o Scots as a communication tool in public,... Edb. 2005:
She's aye oan the keevee for a bargain.
II. adj. On the alert or look-out (Lth. 1959).Lnk. 1909 W. Wingate Poems (1919) 68:
He sampled the neeps, wi' the best for himsel', And the warst for his butty, kee-vee at the slap.
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"Keevee n., adj.". Dictionary of the Scots Language. 2004. Scottish Language Dictionaries Ltd. Accessed 5 Dec 2025 <http://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/snd/keevee>
