I. ˈskäch transitive verb
( -ed/-ing/-es )
Etymology: Middle English scocchen, probably from Anglo-French escocher to make an incision, from Middle French es- ex- + coche notch
1. archaic : cut , gash , score
he scotched him and notched him like a carbonado — Shakespeare
2. : to injure so as to make temporarily harmless
scotched the snake, not killed it — Shakespeare
what seemed crushed had only been scotched — Times Literary Supplement
3.
a. : to put a stop to : stamp out : crush
luckily the mischief was as quickly scotched — Mrs. Humphry Ward
b. : to end decisively by demonstrating the falsity of
the newspapers scotched reports that four ministers … had resigned by publishing a photograph — New York Times
statistics of some accuracy were made available and the depopulation theory was finally scotched — J.H.Plumb
II. noun
( -es )
1. : a slight cut : score
2. : one of the lines marked on the ground for hopscotch
III. adjective
Usage: usually capitalized
Etymology: contraction of scottish (I)
1.
a. : of, relating to, or characteristic of Scotland
b. : of, relating to, or characteristic of the inhabitants of Scotland
2. : of, relating to, or characteristic of the English language of Scotland
3. : frugal
Synonyms:
scotch , scottish , and scots can all apply to what constitutes, belongs to, or derives from the people of Scotland. scotch is most widely used outside Scotland, especially in the spoken language
the entire Scotch people
the inconvenience of having nothing in England like the Scotch one-pound note — J.A.Todd
a schism in the Scotch Church — O.W.Holmes †1935
the overwhelming proportion being English, Scotch, or Irish in descent — Carnegie Magazine
a Scotch painter
not all the Scottish names that survive today are truly Scotch in origin — H.L.Mencken
scottish has a more literary, less colloquial flavor and use
the zest, courage, and good humor of the nineteenth-century Scottish author are infectious — E.A.Bloom
she left for Edinburgh the following year to assume the Scottish crown — Geoffrey Bruun & H.S.Commager
the Scottish Universities — J.G.Winant
Scottish literature
scots is used in the same way as scottish
the names of Scots and English shipowners — Joseph Conrad
a Scots writer — Howard M. Jones
except that scots is sometimes preferred to scottish in reference to law and in historical references to money
a pound Scots
In Scotland itself scottish and scots are often preferred to scotch
a delegation of Scottish editors — Scotsman
Scottish cricket — Scotsman
the Scots community in New York — Scotsman
new Scots air link — Scotsman
but scotch also is used
the signs confirmed my recollection that the Scotch Scotch are not ashamed of the word Scotch and do not go about protesting that Scottish and Scots are preferable forms — A.J.Liebling
especially with regard to the products of Scotland
wool jersey … and Scotch tweeds are favorite fabrics — Women's Wear Daily
IV. noun
( -es ; see sense 2 )
1. capitalized : scots
2. plural in construction , capitalized : the people of Scotland
3. often capitalized
a. : scotch whisky
b. : a drink of Scotch whisky
V. noun
( -es )
Etymology: origin unknown
1. : a chock placed under a wheel or other curved object to prevent rolling or slipping
2. : impediment
now there was a scotch in his running with her — D.H.Lawrence
VI. verb
( -ed/-ing/-es )
intransitive verb
dialect chiefly England : to exercise self-control or hesitate before acting
transitive verb
1. : to block with a chock to prevent rolling or slipping
scotched the back wheels of the wagon with two pieces of wood
2. : to put an obstacle in the way of : hinder , thwart
sensible and limited proposals for the reform of spelling and grammar have been scotched — C.P.Barbier
3. : to wedge into place
scotched a flat stone behind each wheel — E.L.Thomas
tried to break the slat by scotching it against the wall and hitting it with her foot — H.E.Bates
VII.
variant of scutch