Scottish National Dictionary (1700–)
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First published 1974 (SND Vol. IX).
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.
Quotation dates: 1880
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TANTY, adj. Also tontie. Unstable, ready to fall, giddy (Ork. 1929 Marw.); fig. ready to take offence, touchy (Ork. 1880 Dennison Sketch-Bk. 225), “childish, freakish” (Ork. 1922 J. Firth Reminiscences 155), phs. to be associated rather with taunt. Cf. Tant, v., 2.Ork. 1880 Dennison Sketch-Bk. 101, 135:
Some folk, can tak' an' gae a fun, But thu're as tanty aye wi' me . . . I kent mae heid grow tanty Tae see twa friends sae grim an' fell.
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"Tanty adj.". Dictionary of the Scots Language. 2004. Scottish Language Dictionaries Ltd. Accessed 1 Apr 2026 <http://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/snd/tanty>
