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: 1845-1866
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†TEEM, v.2, n.2
I. v. 1. To work as a team. Hence specif. to work two by two in digging over the soil to form a lazy-bed for potatoes (see quot.).Rs. 1845 Stat. Acc.1 XIV. 131:
The most common mode of turning the ground is by teeming, forming a kind of lazy-beds. At this work two persons are employed, one on each side the ridge, which is seldom in a straight line, collecting the earth; and the earth borrowed in this way makes a proper bed for the seed.
2. With on: (1) to work with great energy and speed.Bnff. 1866 Gregor D. Bnff. 191:
They teemt on at the cuttan a' day.
(2) to beat with severity (Gregor).
II. n. With on: a heavy beating (Gregor). Cf. I. 2. (2) above.
[It is uncertain whether all the senses belong to the same word. It has been here treated as specif. or extended usages of Eng. team, a group of people working as a unit, to work in this way. Cf. the somewhat sim. developments of Yoke, q.v.]You may wish to vary the format shown below depending on the citation style used.
"Teem v.2, n.2". Dictionary of the Scots Language. 2004. Scottish Language Dictionaries Ltd. Accessed 15 Dec 2025 <http://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/snd/teem_v2_n2>
