A Dictionary of the Older Scottish Tongue (up to 1700)
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First published 1963 (DOST Vol. III).
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.
Quotation dates: 1650-1700
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Lay, n.7 (In the mod. dial. of Shetl., Orkney and Caithness (to wait for a) lay = a momentary lull between breakers during which a boat etc. may dart through the surf: cf. Icel. lag in the same use.) — c1650-1700 Descr. Zetland 31.
Toward the midle of the isle, the sea is divided by a bank of sand and channel … by which they goe both on horse and foot … excepting when it blows a stress … at which time the islanders … will venture forth upon their horses bred for that purpose, who will cautiously wait a lay, and so at the regress of the surges, they come safely through
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"Lay n.7". Dictionary of the Scots Language. 2004. Scottish Language Dictionaries Ltd. Accessed 15 Dec 2025 <http://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/dost/lay_n_7>
