SUSAN TIPPETT BRAITHWAITE

Welcome to the revamped Things in Scots series. In this incarnation of TiS, I’m sharing the Scots language found in my upcoming romantic suspense novel, Running the Asset.

I heard this week’s word a lot growing up and beyond. I still use it today, usually to myself (read: Neenee, my inner chimp has a tendency to yap a lot).

Here’s the snippet… (unedited first draft)

What Adam wouldn’t give to have his SIG Sauer in his hand right now. Maybe then Leigh Frost would wheesht. Silence he could deal with; he could make the quiet ones tell him their secrets. From the moment they’d cuffed her to the interrogation room table she’d gibbered on non-stop. Everything from Marseille’s varied history to the local fucking soap. Not a damned word about the bomb she’d planted, nor the drive she’d lifted. The woman was almost as infuriating as Elle, though the things in Leigh’s dossier said she was far, far deadlier.

Running the Asset (Deniable Unit #1)

I’ve got my fingers crossed that the context hinted that wheesht means shut up, be quiet, hold her tongue.

This is still prevalent today; a common phrase is, “Haud yer wheesht.” Meaning hold your tongue or be quiet. Wheesht on its own is similar to shh or shush.

That’s it for this week

I hope you enjoyed this post. I’d love to hear your comments on how easy or difficult it was to get the gist of wheesht as it appeared in the quote. 

If you find yourself inspired by the Scots words I share, add the tag #TiS or #ThingsinScots to your writing/art/photo post and drop your link in the comments.

If you want to see more Scots posts, check out the original series, Things in Scots.

Thanks for reading. Take care, and I hope to see you next week for more Scots on Manuscript Mondays!