GUTTER SCOTS

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GUTTER SCOTS. A pejorative term for urban working-class speech in Scotland. Sometimes SCOTS is replaced by a local name, such as Gutter GLASGOW. It is identified by at least the following features, several of which are not confined to Scotland. (1) The GLOTTAL STOP, realizing /t/ and less regularly /p, k/ as glottal plosives after vowels and /l, n, r/: better, bottle, try to, quarter, tryin' to, shelter, keeping, working. (2) Disyllabic forms with an intrusive vowel: ‘girrul’ girl, ‘wurruld’ world, ‘fillum’ film. (3) ‘H-’ for th- in ‘hink’ think, ‘hing’ thing, ‘sumhn’ something, ‘nuhn’ nothing, ‘everyhn’ everything.(4) A realization of thr- as ‘hr-’: ‘hree’ for three, ‘hred’ for thread. (5) Generalizing past participle forms as past tenses and vice versa: Ah never done that; Ah seen im comin; Ah gien im aw Ah had I gave him all I had; Ah've swam further'n that. (6) Other irregularities in verb morphology: Ah seed im comin; Ah've brung ye some sangwidges. (7) Multiple negation: Ah dinna(e) waant nane I don't want any. (8) Never used to negate one event: Ah nivver done nothin I didn't do that. (9) Double auxiliary have: Ye'd've saw im if ye'd've came/If ye'd a came. (10) Here as an exclamation of surprise: And here! the shoap wis open efter aw. (11) Repetition of reporting say: He says tae me e says, ‘Ah'm no comin’; Ah says tae him Ah says: ‘Jis shut up!’ (12) MINCED OATHS as exclamations of surprise: Jings Jesus, Crivvens Christ, Help ma Boab (Help my Bob) Help me God. See SCOTS.

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