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Scottish National Dictionary (1700–)

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First published 1960 (SND Vol. V).
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.

HILCH, v., n.¹ Also hilsh, hiltch; helsh. [hɪl(t)ʃ]

I. v. 1. To limp, to hobble, to move with a rolling lurching gait (Sc. 1808 Jam.; Ant. 1892 Ballymena Obs.; Kcb.⁴ 1900; Ayr. 1923 Wilson Dial. Burns, hilsh; Rxb. 1923 Watson W.-B.; Cai. (hilsh), Lnk., Kcb., Dmf. 1957). Ppl.adj. hil(t)chin, -an, limping, hobbling (Ayr. 1786 Burns Halloween xx.).Ayr. 1786 Burns Ep. to Davie xi.:
My spavet Pegasus will limp, Till ance he's fairly het; And then he'll hilch, and stilt, and jimp And rin an unco fit.Rnf. 1806 R. Tannahill Poems (1876) 121:
She stammers forth, wi' hilchin canter, Sagely intent on strange adventure.Kcb. 1815 J. Gerrond Works 145:
Take drunt and run hilshing awa.Rxb. 1890 J. Rutherford Wanderer of West 59:
Tae see thee twist thine ain pleugh-stilts, Gang helshing up the brae.Dmf. 1923 J. L. Waugh Thornhill 207:
I watch you heading for Crawfordjohn, with that hiltching stride which carries your portly form over many a weary mile.Dmf. 1955:
A bad lurching walker is hilshin, or has a hilsh. Not a limp exactly, but an uneven, lop-sided walk. And a hare hilshes along.

2. With up: to move with a jerk; to hitch up (a load on one's back) (Kcb.⁴ 1900; Cai., Kcb. 1957).

II. n. 1. A limp; the act of walking with a limp (Gall. 1824 MacTaggart Gallov. Encycl. 268; Cai. 1902 E.D.D.; Dmf. 1925 Trans. Dmf. and Gall. Antiq. Soc. 29; Cai., Uls. 1957); an uneven, lurching gait (Cai., Dmf. 1957).Cai. 1929 John o' Groat Jnl. (1 March):
He hid a bit o' a hilch wi' ae leg.

Hence hilchy, a nickname given to a lame person (Ant. 1892 Ballymena Obs.).

2. Of a burden: a lift, a hitch up, hoist.Dmf. 1925 Trans. Dmf. and Gall. Antiq. Soc. 29:
Gie't a hilch on tae my shouther.