Sike

Part of speech: interjection, noun

Definitions

1. A narrow watercourse or small stream, often one that runs through low, marshy ground ; an archaic or dialect word meaning to let out a long, deep breath of sorrow or weariness
2. A little brook or trickle of water, typically found in boggy northern country ; a regional or old-fashioned verb for breathing out heavily in grief or longing
3. A shallow rivulet winding through damp meadows in northern England and Scotland ; a dated dialect verb describing the act of drawing a deep, mournful breath

Etymology: The noun "sike" is an old northern word for a small, slow-moving stream or a boggy hollow where water collects. It descends from Old English "sīċ", which meant something like a trickle of water, and the same root is shared with Old Norse "sík" and the modern Norwegian "sik". In Scots the form survived as "sheuch", a ditch or drain, so the idea of water seeping through low ground stayed attached to the word for centuries. The noun has a surprising twin. Old English also had "sīcan", meaning "to sigh", and the two words were once close enough that they were sometimes confused. "Sike" and "sigh" are doublets: two words from the same ancient source that split apart, one describing the sound of breath and the other the sound of water moving quietly over ground. The interjection is a different matter entirely. It is a modern pronunciation respelling of "psych", used to mock or tease someone, as in "sike!" after a bluff. It has no link to the stream or the sigh.

Synonyms: rivulet, rill, streamlet