A Dictionary of the Older Scottish Tongue (up to 1700)
Hide Quotations Hide Etymology
About this entry:
First published 2001 (DOST Vol. IX).
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.
Quotation dates: 1601-1609
[0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,1,1,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0]
Sparsle, Sparsell, Sparsal(l, v. [Altered form of Sparpal(l v. ? under the influence of Sparse v.] tr. = Sparpal(l v. 2 c. — 1601 Bk. Univ. Kirk III 965 (cf. Sparple v. 2 c).
The impunitie of sick [sc. Papists] quho convoyes and sparsells the bookes through the countrey 1606 Misc. Spald. C. II 151 (cf. Sparple v. b).
Mr. Jhone Hamiltoune … and utheris … are … sparsling Hamiltouns blasphemous new book amangst them, and seducing them everie way 1609 Reg. Privy C. VIII 359.
[These persons] … took the wyndinscheit of ane man who depairtit this lyff of that seiknes, cutit the same wyndinscheit in peiceis, sparsallit the same throu the toun; quhairupon forder infectioun … followit
You may wish to vary the format shown below depending on the citation style used.
"Sparsle v.". Dictionary of the Scots Language. 2004. Scottish Language Dictionaries Ltd. Accessed 15 Dec 2025 <http://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/dost/sparsle>
