Scottish National Dictionary (1700–)
Hide Quotations Hide Etymology
About this entry:
First published 1941 (SND Vol. II).
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.
Quotation dates: 1892-1930
[0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,1,1,1,1,1,0,0,0,0,0,0]
BOOST, Boust, Buist, v.1, tr. and intr. [bust Sc.; byst Kcb.]
1. tr. "To drive off, 'shoo' off; to guide, conduct in a particular direction" (Sc. 1905 E.D.D. Suppl.). Cf. Boast (Cai. quot.).Bwk. 1914 T.S.D.C. I., boost:
Reported from Bwk. with meaning of drive off, used of animals, as of a blow which a sheep gives with her head to a strange lamb. Obsol.Ayr. publ. 1892 H. Ainslie Pilgrimage, etc., and Poems 192:
Lap thro' the door, as baudrons loups Whan boustit frae the pats an' stoups.Kcb. 1893 S. R. Crockett Stickit Minister 200:
He was waiting with crooked stick to "boost" his father home.
2. intr. To move. For use in quot., cf. Eng. slang "shove over!"Gall. 1930 (per Wgt.3):
But when she rose from milking the brockie-faced cow and sat down beside the black Galloway, saying, "Buist ower, Crummie," Sandy gazed towards her.
You may wish to vary the format shown below depending on the citation style used.
"Boost v.1". Dictionary of the Scots Language. 2004. Scottish Language Dictionaries Ltd. Accessed 4 Apr 2026 <http://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/snd/boost_v1>
