Scottish National Dictionary (1700–)
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First published 1971 (SND Vol. VIII).
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.
†SHAEK, n. Sh. form of Chack, n.2, a clicking noise. See S, letter, 6.Sh. 1899 J. Spence Folk-Lore 163:
Hearing certain sounds in old wood, called a shaek, foreboded important events. These sounds are doubtless produced by tiny insects in the wood, but our superstitious forefathers heard them as the voice of Fate. A sound like the ticking of a watch was called a “marriage shaek,” a vibrating sound a “flitting shaek”, and a dropping sound a “dead shaek”.
