Scottish National Dictionary (1700–)
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First published 1965 (SND Vol. VI). Includes material from the 2005 supplement.
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.
Quotation dates: 1820, 1879-1995
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MITTLE, v., n. Also mittal.
I. v. To injure, to do bodily harm to, to maul, mutilate (Ork. 1929 Marw.; ‡Kcd., Ags., Per. 1963); to strike one a heavy blow (Ork. 1920 J. Firth Reminisc. 153). Hence vbl.n. mittlin, mitlin, a hurt, an injury, a scar or weal. Also ppl.adj.Sc. 1820 A. Sutherland St. Kathleen III. vii.:
I'se warrant nae ghaist come your wye, save it be the ghaist o' the stirk, that ye lat get itsel' mittled the ither day.Per. c.1879 Harp Per. (Ford 1893) 347:
Thae “lines” [railway] hae skaed puir fouk nae little, Just look hoo mony a' ane they mittle.Ork. 1880 Dennison Sketch-Bk. 34:
Sae deud Brockie, wi no a mitlin on his body; for his hide wus as teuch as a bull's.Ags. 1896 A. Blair Rantin Robin 26:
Marget's gotten an awfu' mittlin wi' tumlin doon the stair.Abd. 1917 J. L. Robertson Petition 10:
He's murderin', mittlin', burnin', rapin'.Ags. 1948 Forfar Dispatch (8 Jan.):
The Granny on the lum-heid gaed wheekin up ee air afore it fell throwe the sky-licht ee washin-hoose. It wad hae mittled onybody gin it hed played lick on their napper.Ork. 1956 C. M. Costie Benjie's Bodie 172:
Efter aa' hid was o' little account whin Tammie wisno waar mittled.Sc. 1995 David Purves Hert's Bluid 53:
For fullie a week the gorblin blekkie
wi the mittilt weing cokkit its heid
at our houss door and keikit up
at me wi pit-mirk sheinin een.
II. n. A sign of hurt or injury, a scar, weal, etc.Ork. 1880 Dennison Sketch-Bk. 15:
I'me dichted dee face . . . an I canno' find a mittle on dee bodie or a skrat on de skin.
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"Mittle v., n.". Dictionary of the Scots Language. 2004. Scottish Language Dictionaries Ltd. Accessed 9 Apr 2026 <http://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/snd/mittle>
