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Scottish National Dictionary (1700–)

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First published 1956 (SND Vol. IV). Includes material from the 2005 supplement.
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.

GYTE, adj., n.¹ Also gite, geyt, geit(e), †gaet. [gəit]

I. adj. 1. Mad, insane, demented, out of one's senses; mad with rage, pain, fear, joy, etc.; silly, foolish. Freq. in phr. to gae (gang) gyte. Gen.Sc. Also in Nhb. dial.Sc. 1725 Ramsay Gentle Shep. ii. i.:
I'll dance or Een! Hey! Madge, come forth: D'ye hear? The Man's gane gyte!Kcb. 1814 W. Nicholson Poems 36:
Till Kate wauk'd, wi' an unco fike, Cries “What's ado! the dog's gane gyte!”Sc. 1818 Scott H. Midlothian xxiv.:
The gudeman's gane clean gyte, I think.Slk. 1829 Hogg Shep. Cal. (1874) xviii.:
He supposed the moon was at the full, for Jock Amos was “gane quite gyte awthegither.”Per. 1835 J. Monteath Dunblane Trad. 95:
While their gyte taupy dochters in cotton-duds trail.Abd. 1871 W. Alexander Johnny Gibb xvi.:
Are ye gyaun clean gyte to speak o' leavin' yer place; and it only an ouk fae the term tee?Gsw. 1877 A. G. Murdoch Laird's Lykewake 120:
I, pat gyte wi' nervous fear.Ork. 1904 Dennison Sketches 3:
For whin de whall finds de iron i' his flesh, hit mak's him fairly gyte.Ags. 1920 A. Gray Songs 42:
Love will drive you gite, and send you Ower the muir amang the heather.Cai. 1932 John o' Groat Jnl. (28 Oct.):
Preserve's a', boy, are ye gaun clean gyte?Bnff. 1934 J. M. Caie Kindly North 34:
An' gin ye fa' ahin the lave The grieve gyangs fairly gyte.m.Sc. 1986 Colin Mackay The Song of the Forest 116:
Mungo looked about. He saw no one.
"Age," he said. "I'm going gyte." Abd. 1987 Sheena Blackhall in Joy Hendry Chapman 49 56:
Be't earthly or divine, luve's freely gien
As weel with haud yon boundin Heilan burn
Or ban the gowd, that croons the simmer breem
Play gyte Canute, an stem the ocean's turn. ne.Sc. 1991 Ken Morrice in Tom Hubbard The New Makars 60:
My man's denner's
still tae mak. But dearie me, I maun be
gaun gyte! m.Sc. 1991 William Neill in Tom Hubbard The New Makars 52:
An aa fur whit? 'Wes Hamlet gyte? Discuss.' ... Ork. 1995 Orcadian 5 Jan 14:
Perhaps it was a change in the weather that sent the cats clean gyte at the weekend. They charged from end to end of the house, ...

Hence (1) gytit, gyted, adj., insane, half-witted; foolish, “crazy” (Bnff. 1866 Gregor D. Bnff. 72; Ags. 1955); (2) giteness, madness, foolishness.(1) Gsw. 1877 A. G. Murdoch Laird's Lykewake 163:
There's mair than me gang gyted ower Their first new hat.Bnff. 1900 E.D.D.:
He's a peer gytit bairn an' needs leukan aifter.(2) Fif. 1900 “S. Tytler” Jean Keir xiv.:
Regarding the young laird as having reached the last stage of “feyness” and “giteness” in one.

2. Mad with longing or desire, “crazy,” love-sick (about someone), inordinately eager (Sc. 1818 Sawers; Ork., Abd., Kcd., Fif., m.Lth. 1955).Bch. 1804 W. Tarras Poems 2:
Near gyte for Adie! fou he tunes his lay!Fif. 1873 J. Wood Ceres Races 19:
Sooter Tam or Weaver chiel Noo gite to gie the lass a reel.Ayr. 1887 J. Service Dr Duguid 101:
They had a' lads; indeed, half the young fallows of the kintra side were gyte aboot them.Per. 1895 R. Ford Tayside Songs 111:
The first bode o' marriage is laden wi' luck, An' the lassie was gyte for a man.Gall. 1901 Trotter Gall. Gossip 83:
Sae if nae hizzie heraboots a notion haes o' me, They'll a' gang gyte as sune as they the claes an mutches see.Lth. 1920 A. Dodds Songs 7:
And her for him was jist gaun gyte; Bit still an' on he wadna' hae 'er.s.Sc. 1931 Border Mag. (Nov.) 164:
He's a dacent, steedy chap . . . Elspeth's clean gyte aboot him.

3. Stupid, befuddled (with drink).Sc. 1724 Chrons. Atholl and Tullibardine Families (1908) II. 368:
Willie fanced himself the soberest, tho' he begane to grow very gaet.Sc. 1845 J. Grant Romance of War xxxvii.:
I was dumbfounded and gane gyte that nicht, and it was a' after I had bent the biker a gay gude while.

4. Of things: crazed, crazy, nonsensical; awry (ne.Sc., Per., Slk. 1954), esp. in phr. to gae gyte, to go wrong or squint “go hang,” “go to pot”, to lose one's way (ne.Sc., Ags., Per., m.Lth., Peb. 1955).Edb. 1791 J. Learmont Poems 266:
Oh! Minia, say nae that o' love you're free, Or else the warl' may a' gang gyte for me.Dwn. 1844 R. Huddleston Poems 17:
A fit for grief — care might go gite.Rxb. 1847 J. Halliday Rustic Bard 171:
For ilka thing is now gaen gite, Past a' remead.Abd. 1922 G. P. Dunbar Doric 24:
He couldna coont a dizzen richt; his writin' aye gaed gyte.ne.Sc. 1954:
The thing's clean gyte = it is quite crazy, it is all rubbish.

II. n. 1. A madman; a fool.Rnf. 1835 D. Webster Rhymes 194:
Carriers, horse-coupers, and cadgers, Galloping like gytes upon horse, An' blunts wi' their brain in their purse.Rnf. 1836 R. Clark Poet. Pieces 8:
[Wha] wad lose sic pleasure, sic delight, Is but a senseless hav'rel gyte.Bwk. 1936 A. Hepple Heydays (1953) 137:
A fair gyte he'd be if I wasn't here to teach him common sense.

2. Ruin, destruction, in phrs.: (1) to be gone to the gyte, to be undone, ruined (Abd. 1900 E.D.D., Abd. 1955); cf. to gang to the gate, id., s.v. Gate, n., 4. (20) (b); (2) to knock a thing aa to gyte, to knock a thing to pieces, to utterly ruin something (Ib.).