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Scottish

American  
[skot-ish] / ˈskɒt ɪʃ /

adjective

  1. Also of or relating to Scotland, its people, or their language.

noun

  1. the people of Scotland.

  2. Scots.

Scottish British  
/ ˈskɒtɪʃ /

adjective

  1. of, relating to, or characteristic of Scotland, its people, their Gaelic language, or their English dialect

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

noun

  1. (functioning as plural) the Scots collectively

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Commonly Confused

See Scotch.

Other Word Forms

  • Scottishly adverb
  • Scottishness noun
  • half-Scottish adjective

Etymology

Origin of Scottish

First recorded before 900; Middle English, from Late Latin Scott(us) Scot + -ish 1; replacing Old English Scyttisc

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

For his latest challenge, Parrish was running the route to fundraise for Scottish Mountain Rescue in memory of his close friend, Luke Ireland.

From BBC • Apr. 14, 2026

Elsewhere, Edinburgh University announced £140m of cuts to tackle financial difficulties, while the Scottish government bailed out Dundee University with £40m of emergency funding.

From BBC • Apr. 13, 2026

The Scottish Labour leader also claimed his party would arrange an emergency summit of supermarkets to bring down prices of staple items.

From BBC • Apr. 13, 2026

But a target to eradicate long waits by the end of March was missed by the Scottish government, with more than 44,000 such cases recorded.

From BBC • Apr. 13, 2026

“The Scottish airman said to give you these.”

From "Code Name Verity" by Elizabeth Wein

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.