Scots Orthography

Scots Spelling

The spellings used here are based on frequently used non-regional Traditional Scots. These are based on an analysis of existing spelling conventions, historical practice and etymology, applied consistently (see Aw Ae Wey (1.43 MB)). They can to the most part, be read and pronounced in any Scots dialect, with the possible exception of Insular Scots. On the whole the spellings used can be found in the Concise Scots Dictionary published by the SNDA. The following explains the spelling conventions used when choosing among and adapting the spelling variants in the Concise Scots Dictionary. Conventions used follow the spellings in the Scots School Dictionary (SSD) in so far as they are consistent or cross-dialect. The SSD is also published by the SNDA.

Some spellings of course don't always adhere to the 'rules' explained here. These are what I consider 'established spellings' where dictionaries usually have only one entry for the word in question.

Words in Scots are often divided into three groups:

1. Shared vocabulary consists of words which are both common to English and Scots (and other languages as well), often spelled the same in both languages. Many people mistakenly refer to these words as 'English Words' - this is the result of an anglocentric view of the world. The German language uses all, Arm, Dame, Finger, Hand and Land these words are common to both English and German.

2. Close cognates are words which are common to English and Scots (and other languages as well), but which are pronounced (and spelled) differently in Scots i.e. aw, airm, and haund etc.

3. Words particular to Scots. Many people refer to these as 'Scots words', an by implication assume the words in the previous groups are somehow not 'Scots words'. This is based on the false assumption that anything that occurs in English can't be Scots. The fact is that all the words in these groups are Scots words whether they occur in other languages or not.

Some words which only have a slightly different pronunciation in Scots than in Scottish English (usually the vowel sound), generally have same the spelling as in English. Do not assume that because a word is spelled the same as in English it is pronunced as such.

Base forms of words are usually spelled phonemically - not in a one-letter to one-sound manner but in a more graphemically economic manner. In this system position, environment and overt markers enable the same letter or cluster of letters to perform several distinct functions. Several letters or letter clusters may also represent the same sound.

Compounds and derivatives tend to be spelled morphemically, the established grapheme bases are usually retained regardless of the phonemic alterations involved. The assumption being that the reader knows the phonemic alterations that accompany the formation of derivatives and inflections. This may be a hindrance to learning Scots pronunciation from the spellings, but Scots spelling is geared for the convenience of native speakers, not for the learner.

Some words are spelled the same as in English but have a different pronunciation in Scots e.g. aunt(ie), swap, want and wash etc. <a(u)> as in /a/. Bull, full v. and pull etc. <u> /ʌ/. Bind, find and wind v. etc. <i> /ɪ/. (Note in these words the final <d> is often silent.)

Words that sound the same in Scots as in Scottish English usually retain the same spelling e.g. come, door, for, love, some, the, tongue, touch and young etc., except where a Scots spelling has become established or the words have a different 'stressed' form, e.g. A (I), an (and), ma (my), thare and thaim etc.

In some words the spellings have been altered to represent the Scots pronunciation, e.g. lenth and strenth etc.

Short vowels are usually written with:
A final consonant or consonants i.e. buff, bak, ban, lib, licht, seck, tint, wat and wid etc.
Two consonants followed by <e> i.e. birse, carse, dilse, ense, girse, grilse, mense, merse and winze etc.

The spelling <a> for the vowel sound in words like aff, at, back, bak, bap, lat, rax, tak, tap, wad, wash and watch etc.
The spelling <a> is usually used finally for the vowel sound in words like awa, twa and wha etc.

The spelling <e> for the vowel sound in words like ken, gled, ferm and yett etc.

The spelling <i> for the short vowel in words like bird, brig, find, kist, shilpit, whisper, will, wir, wird, wirm, wirthy and wittins etc.
The pronunciation often varies between /ɪ/ and /ʌ/ especially after <w> and <wh>.
/æ/ also occurs in Ulster before voiceless sounds or clusters containing them.
Some writers spell some of the above words with <u>.

The spelling <u> for the vowel sound in words like dubs, bull, drumly hunder and pul etc.

Schwa /ə/ may be represented by <a, e, i, o or u> in unstressed positions i.e. aboot, the, oxter, loanin, bannock and smeddum.

Long vowels are usually written with:
The absence of a following consonant i.e. <e> in be and we /i(:)/, also /e(:)/, <i> in wi /i(:)/ also /ɪ/ and /ə/. The <y> in by is often pronounced /ɪ/, /i/ and /e/ (especially in the West and Ulster) also occur. <o> in jo and no is usually pronounced /o(:)/.
A single consonant followed by <e> i.e. bane, fere, bode and hure etc.
Two letters <aa, au, aw, ae, ai, ay, ea, ee, ei, ie, oa, oo, ou> i.e. faw, glaur, haar, snaw, brae, bairn, day, fear, weet, dreich, bield, gloam, hoose and broun etc

The spelling <e(Consonant)e> is usually always pronounced /i(:)/ e.g. here and fere etc.
The final lexical <e> in verbs preventing homographs of plural nouns in brouse - brous, please - pleas, tease - teas etc.

The spelling <u(consonant)e> for the vowel sound /u(:)/ in words where the spelling is established e.g. dule, bure and hure etc.

The spelling <aw> is usually used where English cognates have <all>, giving: aw, awbody, baw, caw and haw etc.
Many writers use <aa> instead of <aw>.

The spelling <au> is usually used initially and medially, giving: auld, cauld, caunle, draucht, haund, laund, saund and wauken etc.
The cluster <auld> is often pronounced /ʌul/ in Ulster.

Note laund has an unstressed vowel in compounds and is spelled land e.g. hieland and Scotland etc.

The spelling <aw> is usually used finally, giving: braw, draw, gnaw, law, maw, saw, and claw etc.
A few exceptions exist e.g. bawbie, bawd, bawsant.

The spellings <ae>, <ai>, <a(consonant)e>, for the monothongal vowel sound in words like brae, hain, and hame etc.

The spelling <ae> is usually used initially and finally, and occasionally medially, giving: ae, frae, sae, strae and faem etc.

The spelling <ai> is usually used initially and medially . The pronunciation often varies between /e(:)/ and /ɛ/, especially before /r/, giving: aiple, airm, bairn, braith, cairt, dairn, daith, hairt, jaiket, pairt, sair, shairp, stairt and wairm etc.

The digraph <ea> is used in common with many English cognates. Though in English the spelling represents two pronunciations /i(:)/ as in "meat" and /ɛ/ as in "head".
In Scots the <ea> is usually pronounced consistently /i(:)/ or /e(:)/ depending on dialect, in words like eat, east, beard, beat, lead v., heap, beast, read, creash, ease, meal, meat, gear, sea, tea, and fear etc.
The pronunciation /ɛ/ may occur before /r/ in words like early, earn, hearth, learn, and pearl etc.

Scots also uses the traditional digraph <ei> to represent the /i(:)/ or /e(:)/ pronunciations. Especially where English cognates are spelled using <ea> as in English "head".
Scots <ei> is used initially and medially giving: eild, eith,beir, breid, breinge, deid, deif, dreid, heid, leid n., meidae, peir, pleisur, seicont, sweir, teir v. and weir etc.
Except medially before <v> and <ld>, and in shared words where <ie> is used giving: bield , chield, elieven, sieven, shield and shielin etc.

The digraph <ei> before /x/ is usually pronounced /i/ in all dialects.
Giving: dreich, heich, skeich and wheich etc.

A number of words have established <ei> and <ie> spellings, these words are usually always pronounced with /i(:)/.
For example: chief, deil, lief, neibour, neir, neist, nieve, scrieve and speir.

Some writers may use the spelling <ei> in all of the above.

The spelling <ea> is retained in words pronounced the same in Scots and Scottish English e.g. read (past tense). Some writers use <e> for this sound in all words.

The digraph <ee> is pronounced /i(:)/ in all Scots dialects. Freend, permeesion, wee, freet, weel, weet and een etc. Except in Southern Scots where root final it is /əi/.

The spelling <ee> is retained in words pronounced the same in Scots and Scottish English. e.g. creep, feel and seek etc.

Some writers use the spelling <ee> /i(:)/ while others use <ei> or <ie> for this sound in all words.
Other writers use a mixture of <ee>, <ei>, <ie>.

The traditional terminal digraph <ie> is used for diminutives giving: grannie, laddie, lassie, shoppie and wifie etc.

<ie> and <y> are used for forming adjectives, <ie> tends to be used in particularly Scots words and <y> in words the same or similar to English. <y> is usually used for adverbial endings giving: reekie, pernicketie, sairy, stany, stourie, brawly, bonnily, cannie, cannily, feckly, fully, geyly, likely, specially, sairly, shuirly and uncoly etc.
The internal inconsistency caused by unpredicatably using <ie> or<y> will be found on this site. Some writers simply use one or the other.

When forming the participle from verbs ending in <ie> the <ie> changes to <y> giving cairyin and cooryin etc.

<ie> is used at the end of many other words, especially nouns. e.g. cronie, gie and hie etc.

For the sake of orthographic consistency many writes use either <ie> or <y> in all these words.

<o> and <oa> have merged to /o/ in many dialects but some retain the distiction between /ɔ/ and /o/. In Mid Northern Scots /wəi/ may occur before /t/ e.g. coat and gote etc.

The spelling <oo> is used for the vowel sound in words like hoose, aboot and soond in order to avoid confusing <ou> with the English pronunciation.

The traditional Scots spelling <ou> is used in all other words where confusion with the English pronunciation is unlikely. Many writers use either <ou> or <oo> for this sound in all words.

The digraph <ou> is nearly always pronouced /u(:)/ in Scots, except in Southern Scots, when final, it is pronounced /ʌu/.

The spelling <ui> for the vowel sound in words like guid, ruif, tuim, spuin, puir, juist and truith etc.

Diphthongs are usually written with two letters <ey, eu, oi, oy, ow(e), y(e)> etc.

The spelling <i(consonant)e> for the diphthong in words pronounced similarly in Scots and Scottish English e.g. wife, knife, thrice and lice etc. Particularly Scots words are often spelled with the traditional Scots <y(consonant)e> e.g. dyke, fyle, syne and tyne etc.

The traditional spelling <y> is used in words like wynd and also in mynd (mind) and kynd (kind) in order to indicate the Scots pronunciation difference from words like find and bind etc. - rhyme with 'pinn(ed)'.

Some writers use <y(consonant)e> in all words with this diphthong.

The spellings <y>, <ye>, <ey> are used for the diphthong in words like aye (always), ay (yes), kye etc.

The spelling <ey> represents this sound initially and finally in words like eydent, eyster, cley, gey and wey etc.

The spelling <eu> in words like beuk, deuk, eneuch, teuch, leuk, teug, teuk, neuk and heuch etc.
Where a word begins or ends with this diphthong <ew> is used, giving: ewest, new and tew etc.

The spellings <ow> and <owe> (finally) for the diphthong in words like growe, growthe, thowe, howf, dowy, fowk, lowp and cowp etc.
The diphthong <ow> in some of these words, especially before <k>, may be vocalised to /o/ e.g. bowk, fowk and yowk etc.

As in English, in disyllabic words where the first syllable is stressed, the consonant following the single vowel in the first syllable is doubled giving blatter, watter, verra, fremmit, biggit, dizzen, donnert and butter etc.
The following letters are not doubled. <h, j, q, v, w, x,> and <y>.

Many verbs that end with a single consonant letter double it in the present and past participles, and past tense, as do some adjectives for the comparative and superlative i.e. drap - drappin -drappit, het - hetter - hettest.

<f, l, s and z> are usually doubled after short vowels i.e. baff, nyaff, dwall, mell, bass, bress, and bizz etc.

Double consonants are avoided where simple differences to English spelling exist.

aiple	apple	mairy	marry
cairy	carry	mainer	manner
haimer	hammer	maiter	matter
jaiket	jacket

Consonants are not usually doubled after long vowels and diphthongs i.e. ail, kail, gean, neep, heid, loan, heuk, stale and tine etc.

The internal consonant in the past tense and past perfect of verbs like sell, tell, spell, kill and coff become single giving selt, telt, spelt, kilt and coft etc.

The spelling <ch> for /x/ in words like loch, dreich, brocht and nicht, except initially where it usually represents /ʧ/ in words like chiel, cheetie and chouk or where it follows <r> in words like airch. Otherwise <tch> is usually used e.g. catch and pootch etc.
The cluster <nch> is always pronounced /nʃ/ giving: brainch, clinch, dunch, hainch, Inch, French, painch etc.

Initial <c> is usually used:

Before vowels, spelled <au>, <aw>, <a>, <oo>, <ou>, <o> <oa>, and <u>,
before the vowel sound (a few exceptions) spelled <ui>,
before the diphthong spelled <ow>, <owe>,
before <l> and <r>,
giving caw, caw, caddie, carle, caird, cairt, cleid, creash, cou, cloot, croun, coff, corrupt, cosy, cruldge, cushat, cowp, cowt, cley, cryne, cuist and cuit etc.

Initial <k> is usually used:

Before the vowels spelled <e> and <ei>, <ee> and <ea>.
A few exceptions with the vowels spelled <ai> and <ae>, and <ui>, exist,
before the diphthong spelled <i(consonant)e> and <y(consonant)e>,
before <n>,
giving keek, keeng, kebbock, kelter, ken, kye, kyte, kythe, kail, kaim and knife etc.

Initial <sc> is usually used:

Before the vowels, spelled <a>, <aw>, <au>, <aw>, <oo>, <ou>, <o>, <oa>, <u> and <ui>,
before the diphthong spelled <ow> and <owe>,
before <l> and <r>,
giving scantlins, sclaff, scaud, scaur, scone, scoor, scouth, scunner, scowder, scrieve and scuip etc.

Initial <sk> is usually used:

Before vowels spelled <ai>, <ae> and <a(consonant)e>,
before the diphthong spelled <i(consonant)e> and <y(consonant)e>,
giving skail, skaith, sklate, skelf, skelp, sklent, skeel, skirl, skive, skyme and skyte etc.

The terminal <ck> is used at the end of words like beck, feck, and puddock etc.

The terminal <le> is used in words like muckle, traivle, soople and trauchle. This should be changed to <elt> in the past tense and past participle to give traivelt, soupelt and trauchelt etc.

In Many dialects the terminal <d> of <nd> and <ld> is usually silent but is often pronounced in the derived forms (especially past tenses) of many words. In order to achieve orthographic consistency such words are spelled with the <nd>, e.g. haund and soond, and haundit and soondit. Entries in dictionaries often include the terminal <d> in brackets, e.g. haun(d), soon(d), sen(d).
In many words the final <d> of a medial <nd> is also silent. Many words no longer have the <d> pronounced at all. Such words are now spelled using a medial <nn> or <n>.
Here spellings like bind, blind, find and wind are considered adequate for representing the vowel /ɪ/. Some writers use spellings like finn(d) in order to show the Scots pronunciation.

The initial <th> in thanks, thing, awthing and think is often pronounced /h/.
The final <g> in thing is often silent. It is used in writing because the final <ing> is not the suffix for the gerund or present participle. This word is cognate with German Ding and Scandinavian ting.

Final <the> to indicate the voiced consonant /ð/ in bathe, kythe, laithe and skaithe etc.

The pronunciation /s/ or /z/ for final <s> or elided and genitive forms with <'s> or <s'>.
The pronunciation /s/ usually occurs after /f/, /k/, /p/, /t/, /θ/ and /x/.
e.g. laifs, wifes, wife's, lochs and threaps etc.
The pronunciation /z/ usually occurs in plurals ending with <es> and after a vowel sound or /b/ /d/, /g/, /l/, /m/, /n/, /r/, /v/, /ð/ and /ŋ/.
e.g. dous, haunds, hooses, steams, gie's, his, hers and thairs etc.

Final <ss> is usually pronounced /s/ e.g. miss, bliss, bress, uiss and wiss etc.

Final <se> is more complicated and it may be worthwhile consulting a pronunciation dictionary.
Final <se> is usually pronounced /s/ after short vowels /l/, /n/, /p/ and (long vowels before) /r/.
e.g. coorse, grilse, hoose, manse, mense and traipse. etc.
Final <se> is usually pronounced /z/ after long vowels and diphthongs.
e.g. jalouse, lowse, phrase, please and uise etc.

<z> for /z/ is seldom used in Scots, though it does occur in some words as a substitute for the older <ʒ> (yogh) representing the pronunciations /ŋ/, /ŋj/ and /nj/. <lʒ> became /lj/. This has led to a number of variants using the spellings <z>, <y>, <n> and <ng>.
e.g. brulzie - brulyie, gaberlunzie - gaberlunyie, senzie - senyie, Cockenzie - Cockennie, Mackenzie - Mackennie and Menzies - Mingis etc.

Glottal stops /ʔ/ are not indicated in writing. Many speakers substitute a glottal stop for /t/ and sometimes /k/ and /p/, between two vowels.

English and Scots Cognates

Many Scots and English words are derived by direct descent from the same source. Some insights into the spelling of Scots may be gained by comparing the spelling of Scots words to the spellings of their English cognates. There are of course exceptions to the 'rules' explained here.
These comparisons in no way imply English is a 'corrupted' form of Scots!

Different Consonants

• Scots has no 'b' in the accented or any following syllable, where English has it after <m>.

  English	Scots	English	Scots
  amber	lammer	rumble	rummle
  chamber	chaumer	shamble	skemmle
  cumber	cummer	thimble	thummle
  embers	emmers	timber	timmer
  number	nummer	tumble	tummle

  Note.

  Dizember	December	member	member
  September	September	November	November

• As previously mentioned the final <d> after <n> is usually silent. In many words the historic <d> in medial positions is not pronounced. In such words the spelling <n> or <nn> is used.

  candle	caunle	thunder	thunner
  wander	wanner	wonder	wunner

• Scots often has no final 'f' where English does.

  self

  sel

  sheriff

  shirra

• Scots often has no medial and final 'v' where English does.

  calves	caur	have	hae
  delve	del	leave	lea'
  devil	deil	love	lou
  dove	dou	over	ower
  even	e'en	serve	ser
  give	gie	silver	siller
  harvest	hairst	twelve	twal

• In some words Scots has no final 'th', where English does.

  mouth	mou	(uncouth)	unco
  quoth	quo	with	wi

Letter Differences

• In some words Scots has <dd> where English has <th>.

  smithy	smiddie	stithy	stiddie
  withy	widdie

• Scots often has <k> or <ck> where English has <ch>. The Scots <k> or <ck> is often claimed to be of Scandinavian origin.

  birch	birk	larch	larick
  bitch	bick	stitch	steek
  breeches	breeks	stretch	streek
  church	kirk	such	sic
  itchy	yeukie	thatch	thack

• Scots often has <skl> or <scl> where English has <sl>.
  See spellings with <c> or <k> /k/.

  slant	sklent	slender	sklenner
  slate	sklate	slice	sklice

• Scots often has <sk> where English has <sh>.

  shambles

  skemmels

  share

  skair

  shelf

  skelf

• Scots often has <g> or <gg> where English has <dge>.

  bridge	brig	ridge	rig
  dredge	dreg	edge on	egg
  sedge	seg

  Note the exceptions hedge and sled sledge.

• Scots often has <au> where English has <al>.

  calf	cauf	malt	maut
  calm	caum	palm	paum
  chalk	cauk	psalm	psaum
  false	fause	salmon	saumon
  half	hauf	salt	saut
  halse (neck)	hause	scald	scaud

  Note stalk, talk and walk.

• Scots usually has <aw> where English has final <all>.

  call	caw	hall	haw
  all	aw	small	smaw
  ball	baw	stall	staw
  fall	faw	wall	waw

  Note the word caw, also meaning drive.

• Scots often has <ow> medially and <owe> finally, where English has <ol(l)>.

  boll	bowe	hollow	howe
  bolster	bowster	knoll	knowe
  bolt	bowt	poll	powe
  colt	cowt	roll	rowe
  gold	gowd	stolen	stowen
  golf	gowf

  Note the exception: sodger soldier.

• Scots often has <aul> where English has <ol>.

  bold	bauld	hold	haud
  cold	cauld	old	auld
  fold	fauld	scold	scaud

  Note the exceptions:

  solder

  souder

  soldier

  sodger

• In Scots the position of <r> is often switched compared to the preceding or following vowel in English.

  burnt	brunt	proverb	provrib
  christen	kirsten	rhubarb	rhubrub
  grass	girse	turf	truff
  kurb	crub	wart	wrat
  modern	modren	wrestle	warstle
  pretend	pertend

• Scots often has a pronunciation variation between /ʃ/ and /s/ in many words of Norman French origin. These words may be spelled using <s>, <c> or <sh>.

  officer	offisher	gusset	gushet
  cinders	shinners	hoarse	hersh
  sow (clothes)	shew	mince	minsh
  vessel	veshel	notice	notish

• The <ual> in some words may be pronounced /wəl/ .

  actual

  gradual

  annual

• In some words of Latin origin, Scots has kept the original pronunciation /i(:)/ where English has /ɪ/ or /ai/.

  baptise	bapteese	oblige	obleege
  civil	ceevil	original	oreeginal
  item	eetem	pity	peety
  liberal	leeberal	position	poseetion
  licence	leeshence	spirit	speerit

  Note. seestem system.

• Scots often has <-fee> where English has <-fy>.

  magnify	magnifee	satisfy	saitisfee
  modify	modifee	signify	seegnifee

• Scots often has <i> where English has <u>.

  nut

  nit

  summer

  simmer

• Scots often has <e> where English has <a>.

  brass	bress	glad	gled
  clasp	clesp	glass	gless
  hasp	hesp	fast	fest

• Scots often has <ai> where English has <a>. Especially in words with <r> + consonant.

  arm	airm	saddle	saidle
  arrow	airae	sharp	shairp
  father	faither	warm	wairm
  manner	mainer	yard	yaird

• Scots often has <a> where English has <o>.

  crop	crap	soft	saft
  drop	drap	song	sang
  long	lang	strong	strang
  pot	pat	throng	thrang
  sob	sab	top	tap

• Scots often has <a(consonant)e> where English has <o(consonant)e>.

  bone	bane	one	ane
  home	hame	stone	stane
  lone	lane

  Note the exceptions in <ai>.

  cole	kail	sore	sair
  rope	raip	whole	hail

  Note. open remains so in Scots.
  Note. only.

• Scots often has <ee> where English has <e>.

  well	weel	fret	freet
  wet	weet	jelly	jeely

  Note the exception reid red.

• Scots often has <u> or <i> after <wh> and <w> where English has <e>, <i>, or <o>.

  whelk	wulk	word	wird
  woman	wumman	wore	wuir
  worm	wirm

• Scots often has <y> where English has <oi>.

  avoid	evyte	join	jyne
  boil (sore)	byle	point	pynt
  boil (water)	byle	spoil	spyle
  choice	chyce	voice	vyce

  Note.

  ile	oil	oyster	oyster
  queir	choir	noise	noise
  eyntment	ointment	pusion	poison
  ryle	royal

• Scots has <ch> /x/ where English has <gh>.
  Most dialects of Scots have a German like Ich/Ach rule governing the pronunciation of <ch>. <ch> is pronounced /ç/ following a front vowel, and /x/ following a back vowel. For the sake of simplicity /x/ has been throughout this site.

  bought	bocht	might v.	micht
  bright	bricht	night	nicht
  fight	fecht	rough	roch
  fright	fricht	sight	sicht
  high	heich	thought	thocht
  laugh	lauch	tough	teuch
  light	licht	weight	wecht
  might n.	maucht

  Note the exception, 'delight' comes from Old French 'deliter'. The English spelling arose by analogy with 'light'. The word is not pronounced 'delicht' in Scots and is written (and pronounced) 'delite'.
  Burgh retains the <gh> in Scots.

• Scots often has <oo> where English has <ou>.

  about	aboot	out	oot
  house	hoose	round	roond
  mouse	moose	sound (healthy)	soond
  our	oor	sound (noise)	soond

• Scots often has <u> where English has <ou>.

  found	fund	mount	munt
  fountain	funtain	mountain	muntain
  ground	grund	mourn	murn

  Among the exceptions are:

  although	altho	group	group
  colour	colour	thought	thocht
  country	kintra	through	throu
  enough	eneuch	tour	tour

• Scots often has <ou> where English has <ow> medially.

  brown	broun	gown	goun
  cower	couer	powder	pouther
  crowd	croud	power	pouer
  crown	croun	shower	shouer
  down	doun	towel	touel
  drown	droun	tower	touer
  flower	flouer	town	toun
  fowl	foul

• In some words Scots often has final <aw> where English has final <ow>.

  blow	blaw	show	shaw
  crow	craw	snow	snaw
  mow	maw	sow (seeds)	saw
  row (line)	raw	throw	thraw

• In some words Scots often has final <ae> where English has final <ow>.

  arrow	airae	pillow	pillae
  barrow	barrae	shadow	shaidae
  bellows	bellaes	sorrow	sorrae
  borrow	borrae	swallow	swallae
  follow	follae	widow	weedae
  marrow	marrae	window	windae
  meadow	meidae	yellow	yellae
  narrow	nairae

  Similarly in some words Scots often has final <ae> where English has final <a>.

  algebra	algebrae	Canada	Canadae
  America	Americae	China	Cheenae
  alpha	alphae	omega	omegae

• In some words Scots has <ou> where English has final <ow>.

  allow	allou	cow	cou
  bow	bou	how	hou
  brow	brou	now	nou

  Exceptions to the above are:

  bellow	buller	furrow	furr
  below	ablo	minnow	minnin
  elbow	elbuck

• There is some confusion as to which words are spelled with <ui> or <eu> in Scots, where English usually has <oo>.
  This can be explained on the basis of sound shifts.
  The Anglo-Saxon long <o> /o:/ became /ø/ and /y/ in older Scots, then spelled <ui> and <u(Consonant)e> respectively. Now all spelled <ui> or <eu> (see below) in Modern Scots and usually <oo> in English. Similarly with Scandinavian and Romance words.
  This remains /ø(:)/ in Shetland and /y(:)/ in Angus. In other dialects it subsequently shifted to /i(:)/ in North East Scots, and in Central Scots it became /ɪ/ when short and /e:/ when long.

  blood	bluid	palm	luif
  board	buird	pool	puil
  brute	bruit	poor	puir
  cool	cuil	(praise)	ruise
  done	duin	refuse	refuise
  floor	fluir	school	schuil
  ford	fuird	spoon	spuin
  fruit	fruit	sure	shuir
  good	guid	Thursday	Fuirsday
  loom	luim	use n.	uiss
  moon	muin	use v.	uise
  moor	muir	(young coal-fish)	cuithe

• In some of the above the Central Scots pronunciation has established itself in the spelling.

  ado

  adae

  do

  dae

  shoe

  shae

  to

  tae

  e.g. dae do, did did, duin done and dis does.

• Some words descended from the long <o> now have <i>.

  brother	brither	mother	mither
  foot	fit	other	ither

  Note. wid wood isn't descended from long <o>.

• Where the Anglo-Saxon long <o> /o:/ was followed by /k/ or /x/ the sound shifted to <eu> in Scots. Pronounced /(j)u/ or /(j)ʌ/ depending on dialect.
  Similarly with Scandinavian words.

  book	beuk	hook	heuk
  bough	beuch	laughed	leuch
  (cliff)	heuch	look	leuk
  (ravine)	cleuch	nook	neuk
  (ditch)	sheuch	plough	pleuch
  duck (bird)	deuk	(sparrow)	speug
  enough	eneuch	tough	teuch

  Note teug tug.

• In some words Scots has no final <e> as in English <ure>.

  creature	craitur	nature	naitur
  lecture	lectur	picture	pictur
  mixture	mixtur	venture	ventur

  Note. secure, siccar.

• In many words Scots has initial <a> where English has <be>.

  because	acause	beneath	aneath
  before	afore	beside	aside
  behind	ahint	between	atween
  below	ablo	beyond	ayont

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