Scottish National Dictionary (1700–)
Hide Quotations Hide Etymology
About this entry:
First published 1956 (SND Vol. IV). Includes material from the 1976 supplement.
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.
Quotation dates: 1813, 1866-1939
[0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,1,0,0,0,0,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,0,0,0,0,0,0]
GIRNIE, adj., n. Also girny.
I. adj. Peevish, ill-tempered, querulous, fretful (n.Sc. 1825 Jam.). Gen.Sc. Hence girnie-gabbit, carping, complaining.Rnf. 1813 G. MacIndoe Wandering Muse 212:
Nor sair the sakeless woodie twine My girnie-gabit deary.Edb. 1872 J. Smith Habbie & Madge 28:
To please them when they were fashious an' girny, an' mak them sleep.Gsw. 1902 J. J. Bell Wee MacGreegor x.:
"I dinna think I'll gang oot the day, John," said Lizzie. "Wee Jeannie's that girny."Bnff. 1939 J. M. Caie Hills & Sea 5:
Or fat if he think me grim, girnie, an' hatefu' — Fat will be left fin my love is a' spent?
Comb.: girny-gib(bie), -gub, a peevish, bad-tempered person, esp. of a youngster (Rxb. 1923 Watson W.-B.; Bwk.3, Uls.4 (-gub) 1954). Also attrib.Gsw. 1872 J. Young Lochlomond Side 73:
A grey-beard girny-gib, Sworn wi' ill-nature to keep sib.Ayr. 1890 J. Service Notandums xiii.:
There's the tawpie mither . . . thinks there never was . . . sic a guid wean as this girnie-gibbie brat o' hers.
II. n. A fretful, peevish, bad-tempered person (Rxb. 1923 Watson W.-B.; Sh., Ork., Ags., Slg., Fif., wm.Sc., Rxb. 1954).Bnff. 1866 Gregor D. Bnff. 63:
There's girnie t' the rod agehn; he's been our lang at paice.Fif. 1897 "G. Setoun" George Malcolm i.:
Weel, have ye got ower your tantrums, young girnie.
You may wish to vary the format shown below depending on the citation style used.
"Girnie adj., n.". Dictionary of the Scots Language. 2004. Scottish Language Dictionaries Ltd. Accessed 19 Dec 2025 <http://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/snd/girnie>
