Speel

Pronunciation varies by accent · verb

Meaning

(dialect, Scottish and Northern English) To climb..

Definitions by Sense

1. (dialect, Scottish and Northern English) To climb.
2. To talk at length, to spiel.
3. (dialect, Australia) To run.
4. (chiefly South Africa) A story; a spiel.
5. (Cumbria, Lincolnshire) A splinter; a strip of wood or metal.
6. (dialectal, rustic, Northern England, Scotland) A game.
7. (dialectal, rustic, Northern England, Scotland) To lake, play, sport, take amusement.

Example Sentences

1832 March 5, Memoirs of a Paisley Baillie, The Day: A Journal of Literature, Fine Arts, Fashions, &c., Glasgow, page 218, This I thocht at the time when he was speeling up the ladder before me in the Hie Kirk steeple ; but good breeding, at that particular time, keeped me from taking ony correck view of how things stood in that quarter.

1860, Hugh MacDonald, Days at the Coast: A Series of Sketches Descriptive of the Firth of Clyde, Glasgow, page 255, There is a comfortable inn at this picturesque spot, where those who purpose speeling the lofty Ben generally prepare for their arduous undertaking.

They were catched speeling up the lamp-posts and taking oot the cruizes and drinking the ulye, wick and a′.

1973, Irene Baird, Waste Heritage, Macmillan of Canada, page 262, “I must close now or I shall go on speeling all night. […] ”

Old Saxon, who was so sweet and gentle despite his long years on the halls, smiled at me and suggested I should do some speeling. Yedo gave me a megaphone. I held it to my mouth but there was silence.

To play a good speel.

To speel ba'.

Synonyms for speel

Antonyms for speel

Related Words

Word Forms

• speels
• speeling
• speeled
• speil
• spele
• speal
• spiel
• spael
• spool

Usage Notes

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