Strivelin

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A small, feeble, or stunted person or creature, a term used in Scots dialect for someone thin and underdeveloped
2. In Scottish speech, a puny, sickly individual who is slight and poorly grown, especially a child or young animal
3. A Scots word for a thin, frail, or undersized being that seems to be struggling to thrive

Etymology: "Strivelin" is a Scots word for a weak, puny, or sickly person or creature, one who struggles along feebly. It is most likely formed from "strive" with the diminutive suffix "-ling," the same ending found in "duckling" and "darling," so the sense is roughly "a little one that strives." The "strive" part came into English through Old French "estriver," meaning to strive, quarrel, or contend, which probably goes back to a Germanic source. The Scots form has survived mainly in regional dictionaries, so its exact early history is less well documented than that of common English words, and the precise date of its first recorded use is uncertain.