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Scottish National Dictionary (1700–)

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First published 1941 (SND Vol. II). Includes material from the 1976 and 2005 supplements.
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.

CACK, CACH, CACKIE, CACKY, Cakie, Caukie, v., n. Also forms with initial k; kach, kax, kacky, kaki, kakki, kaakie. Obs. except dial. in Eng. (N.E.D.). Cf. Keech and Kich. Gen.Sc. [′kɑk(ɪ̢), kɑx]

1. v.

(1) intr. To void excrement; “to go to stool; generally used in regard to children” (Sc. 1825 Jam.², cackie; Sh. 1908 Jak. (1928), kaki, kakki; Ayr.⁴ 1928, kach, kacky).Sc. 1728 Ramsay Poems II. 83:
Twa Herds between them coft a Cow: Driving her hame, the needfu' Hacky But Ceremony chanc'd to k[acky].Bnff.² 1914:
I'm needin t' cach, mammie.Fif. 1930 (per Fif.¹):
Once upon a time when geese were swine And monkeys chewed tobaccy, The little dogs put on their clogs And went to the doors to cacky.

†(2) tr. “To befoul with ordure” (Sc. 1825 Jam.², s.v. kacky; Ayr. 2000s).Sc. 1711 Country Wedding in J. Watson Choice Collection (1869) III. 49:
Out at the Back-door fast can she slyde, And loos'd a Buckle wi' some Bends, And cakied Jockie for a' his Pride.Gsw. 1999 Paul Foy in Moira Burgess and Donny O'Rourke New Writing Scotland 17: Friends and Kangaroos 47:
Well, this auld punter looks like he's gonny cack his pants an then when he tells everywan they aw look like the'rr aboot tae cack therr pants anaw ...

2. n., sing. and pl.

(1) “Human ordure” (Sc. 1825 Jam.², cacks, cackies; 1887 Jam.⁶, Add., kax; Ayr.⁴ 1928, kach; Edb., Gsw., Ayr., Rxb. 2000s); “the excrement of children” (Gall. 1824 MacTaggart Gallov. Encycl. 108, cakie). Also used as an exclamation “to warn children from touching any dirty substance” (Cai. 1902 E.D.D., kach); cf. Kae, int. Comb. cacklum, a close-stool. See Lume, n., 2. Bnff. c.1760 Banffshire Jnl. (19 Feb. 1957):
Cleanning the cack lum.Edb. 1994:
I goat covered in cackie! [changing a baby's nappie] Edb. 1995:
Ah stood in a dug's cackie.

(2) The act of voiding excrement (Edb., Arg., Ayr. 2000s).Arg. 1992:
Ah'm goin for a cackie.

3. Phr.: kaakie stammackit, caukie —, having imperfect digestion, fastidious.Bnff.² 1930:
“Foo are ye sellin' the black meer?” “Oh, she's some kaakie stammackit kin', an' aye gangs aff o' her maet in spring.”Bch. 1929 (per Abd.¹):
Ye caukie stammackit ablich! Fat's vrang wi' yer guid pottage?