SPIL, sb. a stake.  Douglas, III, 250, 16.  O.N. *_spilr_, variant
    of spoelr.  Cp.  Norse spil, in the diall. of Western Norway. 
    See spale.

SPRATTLE, vb. to walk through mud, to scramble through wet and
    muddy places as the result of which one’s clothes become
    soiled.  Burns, 10, 11, 3; also 68, 1, 3.  O.N. spretta, Norse
    spretta to spurt, sputter, splash, Sw. spritte.  On
    assimilation of nt, cp. sprent.  The l is frequentative. 
    Exhibits characteristic Sco. change of e to a before t. 
    Cp. wat for wet, swat for sweat.

SPRENT, vb. to start, spring.  Wallace, N, 23.  O. Dan. sprenta,
    spurt out, spring, start, O.N. spretta, Norse spretta,
    shoot forth, spurt.  In Cu. a pen is said to sprent when it
    scatters the ink over the paper.  So in Norse.  The Sco. word
    agrees more closely in meaning with the Norse than with the
    Dan. but exhibits E. Scand. non-assimilation of nt to tt
    which took place in Norse before 1000.  Sw. diall. which
    otherwise have many W. Scand. characteristics have both
    sprenta and spritta.  The word spraette also occurs in
    later Dan.

SPRENT, sb. a spring, as the back spring of a knife.  Wallace, IV,
    238.  See sprent, vb.

STAKKER, STACKER, vb. to stagger.  Brace, II, 42; Gol. and Gaw.,
    II, 25.  O.N. stakra.  See B-S. under M.E. stakerin.  Cp. 
    Norse stakra, to stagger, to fall.

STANG, vb. to sting.  R.R., 771.  O.N. stanga, to prick, goad,
    also to butt, Norse stanga, Dan. stange, id., M.E.
    stangen.

STAPP, vb. to put into, to stuff, fill.  Dunbar, T.M.W., 99; Montg. 
    C. and S., 1552; Isaiah, VI, 6; M.W. 21, 12.  O.N. stappa, to
    stamp down, Norse stappa, to stuff, fill, same as O.E.
    stempan, Eng. stamp, Dan. stampe.  The assimilated form
    stampa occurs in Norse beside stappa.  The usage in Sco. is
    distinctively Norse and the vowel is the Norse vowel.  Not the
    same as Eng. stop, O.E. (for)_stoppian_ in Leechdoms.  With
    the last cp.  Dan. stoppe used just like Eng. stop.

STARN, sb. the helm of a vessel.  Dunbar, F., 450.  O.N. stjorn,
    steerage, helm, Norse stjorn, vb. stjorna, to steer,
    cognate with Eng. steer, O.E. styrian.  For a similar
    difference between the Eng. and the Norse word cp.  Eng. star
    and Norse stjerne.

STARR, sb. sedge, heavy coarse grass.  Jamieson.  See Wall under
    star.