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Dictionars o the Scots Leid

Scottish National Dictionary (1700–)

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First published 1974 (SND Vol. IX). Includes material from the 2005 supplement.
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.

THEIR, possess. adj. Also thair; thir (Edb. 1 773 Fergusson Poems (S.T.S.) II. 85; Abd. 1922 Swatches o' Hamespun 47), ther-; thur. In Sc. used as an alternative to them in combs.

Sc. forms of Eng. their. m.Sc. 1988 William Neill Making Tracks 90:
The stuckies arna jist ma wale o burd;
It's nae gret pleisure whan thair sang is heard;
thair jaikit's bonnie but a wee thing flash ...Gsw. 1990 John and Willy Maley From the Calton to Catalonia 1:
The heirs a John MacLean, clutchin a quire a Daily Workers, staunin oan boaxes at the Green, shakin thur fists at the crowds that gethered tae hear aboot the plight ae the Spanish Republic.Sc. 1991 T. S. Law in Tom Hubbard The New Makars 33:
the maist o colliers' hames were haundie
til pitheid, juist abuin the cundie;
an colliers' pieces, lyke thur myns
were juist made-up in aa thur kynsDundee 1991 Ellie McDonald The Gangan Fuit 25:
Our mither tongue wis dung doun
in Scotland bi John Knox.
Juist tae mak shair
it bided yirdit
the weans got thir licks
frae the dominie
for yasin the auld leid ...

Sc. Combs.: (1) their lane, by themselves, alone (of two or more). Gen.Sc. See Lane, adj., 2.; (2) their sel(l)(s), ther-, thir-, themselves, -sel being gen. used collectively and -sels individually (s.Sc. 1873 D.S.C.S. 197; Fif., Lth., Ayr. 1923–6 Wilson; Bwk. 1942 Wettstein; Rxb. 1942 Zai; Uls. 1953 Traynor). Gen.Sc. and colloq. Eng. See Sel, I. and Them, and for Sh. forms, Dir. [ðər′len, ′-sɛl(z)] (1) Bnff. 1885 C. E. Dalrymple Lays 21:
Harry has wyled out Duncan Gorme Just him an' him their lene.(2) Sc. 1746 D. Warrand More Culloden Papers (1930) V. 13:
Without any molestation to theirselves.Lth. 1819 J. Thomson Poems 124:
But first of a' theirsells' practise.Bwk. 1823 A. Hewit Poems 80:
Mony ane wha drinks wi' hungry wame, Forgets theirsel' an' scarce can stagger hame.Ayr. 1856 H. Craig Aspirations 25:
Ayrshire folks may see theirsel.Dmf. 1874 R. Reid Moorland Rhymes 55:
Gowks gather gear for loons, tae wair, As thriftless as theirsel's were near.Fif. 1897 S. Tytler Lady Jean's Son iv.:
Wranglin', day by day, in the Parliament House, divided among theirsels.Uls. 1900 A. McIlroy Craig-Linnie Burn 129:
Twustin' thirsel's intae a' sorts o' shapes an' forms.Rxb. 1925 E. C. Smith Mang Howes 5:
The Borderers lang syne geh thersels an awfih leife o'd.Bwk. 1951 Scots Mag. (Feb.) 339:
Townsfolk just want to “have their ain fireside to theirsels.”Edb. 1998 Gordon Legge Near Neighbours (1999) 129:
I wanted to stop and look at her. I'd never seen anybody or anything so content. I'd never seen anybody so pleased with theirselves, so satisfied, so at ease with theirselves. See the smile on her face, just beautiful. wm.Sc. 2000 Liz Lochhead Medea 7:
to draw doon the vengeance of the
ayeways angry Gods that look down and ayeways punish
them who think theirsels somebody