worricow

English

Alternative forms

• wirricow

Etymology

From worry (“to harass”) +‎ cow.

Noun

worricow (plural worricows)

1. (Scotland) An imp or hobgoblin.
   • 1757, [Tobias George Smollett], The Reprisal: Or, The Tars of Old England. […], London: […] R[oberts] Baldwin, […], →OCLC, Act II, scene i:

     Hout, na! it canna be our commander Monſieur de Champignon, running about in the dark like a worricow!

2. (Scotland) Anything frightful or grotesque.