Jougs
noun ·Rare ·Advanced level
Definitions
- 1 A chained iron collar once used in churches to expose sinners to public scorn. Scotland, especially, historical
"Fornication and adultery were crimes punishable in case of confession in various ways […] standing in the jougs at the door of the kirk barefoot and in sackcloth […] Blasphemy, swearing, drunkenness, " flyting and scolding," slander, " the abuse of husbands by their wives," and other suchlike offences were punishable with exposure to public scorn in the " jougs," […] The "jougs" (from jugum, a yoke) consisted of an iron collar in two halves fastened by a clasp, and suspended by a chain about six feet from the ground, which was generally hung on the wall at the entrance gate of the Church."
- 2 plural of joug form-of, plural
Synonyms
All synonymsExample
More examples"Fornication and adultery were crimes punishable in case of confession in various ways […] standing in the jougs at the door of the kirk barefoot and in sackcloth […] Blasphemy, swearing, drunkenness, " flyting and scolding," slander, " the abuse of husbands by their wives," and other suchlike offences were punishable with exposure to public scorn in the " jougs," […] The "jougs" (from jugum, a yoke) consisted of an iron collar in two halves fastened by a clasp, and suspended by a chain about six feet from the ground, which was generally hung on the wall at the entrance gate of the Church."
Etymology
From Latin iugum (“yoke”), possibly via French jougs.
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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.