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: 1533-1584
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Lurkan(d, ppl. a. Also: lurken, lurcan. [North midl. ME. lourekand (c 1400), f. Lurk v. Cf. Lurking.] Lurking. a. fig. Latent, concealed. b. Skulking, sneaking, shirking.a. 1533 Boece xvii. iv. 631.
Thair is ane lurkand pest fast burgeand with irremediable venome a1538 Abell 100 a.
Sa inwy is lurken malis a1538 Ib. 126 a.
Lurkand perdycyon aganys the king wes propalit 1560 Rolland Seven Sages 37.b. 1570 Satirical Poems xiii. 176.
Sa sall we se and heir Quhat lurkand lubers wil tak thir lymmeris parts 1584 Sempill 1584 Ib. xlv. 328.
With this the word yead through the toun, How lurcan Lowrie played the lowne
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"Lurkan ppl. adj.". Dictionary of the Scots Language. 2004. Scottish Language Dictionaries Ltd. Accessed 14 Dec 2025 <http://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/dost/lurkand>
