Scotale

noun

noun ·Rare ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    An enforced bout of drinking, in which a lord, forester, sheriff, or beadle required all men, on pain of punishment, to purchase or contribute to a gathering for drinking. UK, historical

    "The bailiff or sub-bailiff that had or held the 'scotale' often began by stealing or extorting sheaves of corn from the men of the neighbourhood. From these he brews his beer, and expects them from whose corn it has been brewed to come and drink it, and to pay for the drinking of it."

Example

More examples

"The bailiff or sub-bailiff that had or held the 'scotale' often began by stealing or extorting sheaves of corn from the men of the neighbourhood. From these he brews his beer, and expects them from whose corn it has been brewed to come and drink it, and to pay for the drinking of it."

Etymology

From Scot + ale.

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.