Scottish National Dictionary (1700–)
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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.
‡GORNAL, n. A Cai. word for a button, gen. a trouser button, but also “applied to the mother-of-pearl buttons on a ploughman's sleeved vest” (Cai. 1940 John o' Groat Jnl. (19 Jan.)). Also attrib. [′gɔrnəl]Cai. 1916 T.S.D.C. H.:
In rising he pulled out one of the gornal buttons to which his straps were fixed.Cai. 1940 John o' Groat Jnl. (2 Feb.):
In my school days [the word] was applied particularly to trousers' buttons, and as white or black “gornals” were won or lost at “pitch and toss.”
