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Scottish National Dictionary (1700–)

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About this entry:
First published 1968 (SND Vol. VII).
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.

POAK, v. Also poag. To walk slowly and deliberately, to march around in a purposeful way, poag gen. implying quicker or more active movement (I.Sc. 1966, poak).Ork. 1929 Marw.:
A fowl looking for food in a field would be said to be “ gyaan poakan”. Also used without suggestion of search: e.g. of a man walking sedately about his house . . . An old man describing how he caught a skarf in his “girn” said he was watching the bird, and “she poag-ed this way an' she poag-ed that way, and then she poag-ed i' the girn.”

[Orig. somewhat uncertain, phs. simply variants of Eng. poke, to move about aimlessly, to grope or pry about.]

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