A Dictionary of the Older Scottish Tongue (up to 1700)
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First published 1951 (DOST Vol. II).
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.
Quotation dates: 1399-1608, 1685
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Difficulté, Deficulté, n. Also: dyficulté, dif(f)icultee, -tie, difickwaltie; defyculté, deficultee, -tie, defiecultie, def(f)eculté, -tie, defykiltee. [ME. difficulté (Wyclif), dyffyculté, etc., OF. difficulté, L. difficultas.] Difficulty.(a) a1400 Legends of the Saints xvi. 507.
With gret dyficulte To do that than purchast he 1456 Hay I. 122/26.
He sall nocht hynder it, na ger it … be done with gretter cost or dificultee 1490 Irland Mir. I. 54/20.
Thai … wat nocht quhat difficulte is in that batall 1513 Doug. xi. iv. 28.
With gret difficulte The cundytis of his voce war lowsyt fre a1578 Pitsc. I. 26/13.
He sould haue grettar difficultie to repres thair insollence 1608 Highland P. III. 108.
In respect of the difficulteis we fand at the lait conuentioun c 1685 Annandale Corr. 314.
With great difickwaltie they gott the old tour saved(b) 1456 Hay I. 83/21.
It is … mare vertuous thing to assaile na to abyde, and mare grete deficultee 1456 Ib. 252/16.
That is small deficulte c1420 Ratis Raving 226.
Sua that thow may … Haf that vs [= use] but defykiltee 1499 Douglas Chart. 173.
In any mater of defeculte 1515 Douglas Corr. 70.
Wyth gret defyculte … we mycht bring the Queyne thyddyr 1549 Compl. S. 133/1.
The defeculte of the comitting of trason is vondir grit 1549 Ib. 133/4.
Ane thousand deffeculteis a1578 Pitsc. I. 75/22.
With small deficulltie they slew him a1578 Ib. 86/2.
He thocht … it was bot lyttill defiecultie to obtaine the kingis favour
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"Difficulté n.". Dictionary of the Scots Language. 2004. Scottish Language Dictionaries Ltd. Accessed 15 Dec 2025 <http://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/dost/difficulte>
