Scottish National Dictionary (1700–)
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First published 1971 (SND Vol. VIII). Includes material from the 2005 supplement.
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.
Quotation dates: 1805, 1925-1935, 1988
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†SPATRIL, n. Also spatrel.
1. A gaiter or spat (Rxb. 1825 Jam., ‡1923 Watson W.-B.).
2. A musical note, esp. as written on a score (Rxb. 1825 Jam.). Now only arch.Rxb. 1805 A. Scott Poems 22:
Thy flats, and sharps, and rests, and nat'rals, Wi' figures, dots, and mystic spatrils.s.Sc. 1925 H. M'Diarmid Sangschaw 13:
Syne i' the lift Byous spatrils you'll mak'.Sc. 1935 W. Soutar Poems in Scots 30:
What spatrels rin Out on the four wings o' the win!Ags. 1988 Raymond Vettese The Richt Noise 30:
I ken they'll no, nor will their be a horn
glorious wi hairt-heezin spatrils upsteir
or e'en the deid wad pairt oceans tae hear.
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"Spatril n.". Dictionary of the Scots Language. 2004. Scottish Language Dictionaries Ltd. Accessed 18 Dec 2025 <http://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/snd/spatril>
