Scottish National Dictionary (1700–)
Hide Quotations Hide Etymology
About this entry:
First published 1971 (SND Vol. VIII).
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.
Quotation dates: 1744, 1866-1881
[0,0,0,0,1,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,1,1,1,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0]
SPOT, n. Sc. usages. For Sc. forms see Spat, n.1
1. A person or thing which attracts attention, someone or something remarkable. Used esp. in neg. or ironical contexts.Bnff. 1866 Gregor D. Bnff. 178:
She's a gey spot. That wife o' his is nae great spot.
2. A round cushion of pins (Bnff. 1965, a spot o' preens). Also attrib. Cf. Spat, n.1 Combs. spot-preen, a pin, as used in playing with the teetotum (Sc. 1911 S.D.D.).Inv. 1744 Trans. Inv. Scientific Soc. I. 234:
4 sheets gray paper, 2 spots pins.ne.Sc. 1881 W. Gregor Folk-Lore 163:
A plentiful supply of “spot” and loose pins.
3. In deriv. spottin, as a weaving term: thick yarn (Ayr. c.1930, Ayr. 1971).
You may wish to vary the format shown below depending on the citation style used.
"Spot n.". Dictionary of the Scots Language. 2004. Scottish Language Dictionaries Ltd. Accessed 17 Dec 2025 <http://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/snd/spot>
