A Dictionary of the Older Scottish Tongue (up to 1700)
Hide Quotations Hide Etymology
About this entry:
First published 1937 (DOST Vol. I).
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.
Quotation dates: 1420, 1567-1584
[0,0,0,0,1,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,1,1,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0]
Arghnes, Archnes, n. Also: harchenes. [Northern ME. arghnes (Kent. arȝnes) f. Argh a.] Faint-heartedness, timidity; meanness. c1420 Wynt. viii. 1613 (W).
He wes trowit of gret arghnes c1420 Ratis Raving 311.
It is archnes that can bot hwn Als weill leue it that suld be done a1568 Mersar Bannatyne MS 213/47 (see Argh v.).
Harcheness 1584 Satirical Poems xlv. 770.
For archnes to had in a grote, He had no will to fie a bote
You may wish to vary the format shown below depending on the citation style used.
"Arghnes n.". Dictionary of the Scots Language. 2004. Scottish Language Dictionaries Ltd. Accessed 18 Dec 2025 <http://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/dost/arghnes>
