A Dictionary of the Older Scottish Tongue (up to 1700)
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First published 1986 (DOST Vol. VI).
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.
Preoc(c)upat, v. [e.m.E. preoccupate (1582), præ- (1592), take possession beforehand, prepossess, anticipate, etc., L. præoccupāt- ppl. stem of præoccupāre.] tr. a. To anticipate or forestall. = Preoc(c)upy v. c. b. To bias. = Preoc(c)upy v. b. —a. 1588 Reg. Privy C. IV 287.
[Lord Maxwell] to preoccupat thair arryvall hes causit his speciall kynnismen … occupy his hienes awne houssis —b. c1590 Fowler II 21/18.
Thais quhais heartis are not preocupat be his false narratioun
