howdie

American  

[hou-dee, ou-, hoh-dee, oh-dee] / ˈhaʊ di, ˈaʊ-, ˈhoʊ di, ˈoʊ di /

noun

Scot. and North England Slang.

1. a midwife.

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Etymology

Origin of howdie

Origin uncertain

Example Sentences

Jenny cried, wi' blushing cheeks, 'Eneugh! we've seen the Skipper's breeks, Sic zeal may weel become a howdie, I draw the line at breeks,' quo' Jenny Braidie.

From A Golfing Idyll or The Skipper's Round with the Deil On the Links of St. Andrews by Flint, Violet

I was bewildered—the light in the room made my een reel; but I soon came to myself, when I saw a man and Mrs. Kemp the howdie busy rowing something in flannel.

From Wilson's Tales of the Borders and of Scotland, Volume XXIII by Wilson, John Mackay

And a merry mouse in a mill, With a howdie crowdie, &c. &c.

From Notes and Queries, Number 37, July 13, 1850 by Various

A woman living at Kildonan, on the north shore of Little Loch Broom, and exercising the useful profession of howdie, or midwife, had been summoned to attend a case at Keppoch.

From Literary Tours in The Highlands and Islands of Scotland by Holmes, Daniel Turner

It seems to me," said the flustered howdie, "that it was but last night that I left for Keppoch.

From Literary Tours in The Highlands and Islands of Scotland by Holmes, Daniel Turner