A Dictionary of the Older Scottish Tongue (up to 1700)
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First published 2001 (DOST Vol. IX).
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.
Quotation dates: 1513, 1700
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Spritty, Sprety, adj. [e.m.E. sprighty (1609); Spirit n.] a. Of a quality or attribute: Vigorous, spirited. b. Of liquor: Possessing lively properties; having the capacity to induce liveliness or gaiety. —a. 1513 Doug. xi viii 26.
Full eith it is fortill assay, and se Quhat may our sprety fors in the melle; And, as full weill is knawyn to ws eik, Our fais beyn not far from hens to seik —b. c1700 Pennecuik Poems 333.
Such spritty liquor cures us of all sorrow … While we are here we'll no sweet comfort shun, There is no brandy in the world to come
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"Spritty adj.". Dictionary of the Scots Language. 2004. Scottish Language Dictionaries Ltd. Accessed 13 Dec 2025 <http://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/dost/spritty>
