Steall

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. A cascade of falling water, such as the well-known Steall Falls in Glen Nevis in the Scottish Highlands
2. The Gaelic term for a waterfall, applied to the famous cascade in Scotland's Glen Nevis
3. A waterfall in the Scottish Highlands, notably the Glen Nevis cascade known as Steall Falls

Etymology: "Steall" is a Scottish Gaelic verb meaning "to steal," and it is the everyday Gaelic word for theft. It comes from Old Irish "slat," the same root that gives Gaelic "slaodh," and it belongs to the same family of Celtic words for stealing, though the exact path of its development is only partly recorded. Because Gaelic was spoken across Scotland and Ireland for centuries, the word has long been part of the shared Goidelic vocabulary of both countries. Its meaning has stayed remarkably steady, which makes it a useful example of a core verb that has survived with little change in form or sense.

Synonyms: steal, pilfer