n ā, f. (?)

(a) a spade or similar tool used for digging: fec quasi pec quia pingit [leg. pungit] terram , Corm. Y 630 . f.¤ quia figitur terra (sic leg.), O'Mulc. 506 . fec .i. laige a spade O'Cl. feac, Eg. Gl. 353 . O'Curry mentions that in his time `feac' meant in Munster the spade-handle only, while in Meath and east Leinster it was used of the whole spade, ML 166 n . aendu[i]ne ic romhur ┐ f.¤ tentidhi ina laimh, RC xiv 50.22 . a fidhbac ┐ a ḟeac ┐ a sluasat, ZCP vi 271.24 . pl. fecca do thabairt ar na fedaib, ML 164y (of spikes fixed horizontally to poles used in digging for the diggers to put their feet on).

(b) a tooth, tusk: feacc no fecc .i. fiacail, O'Cl. féc Pátraicc, Arch. Hib. iv 205.17 = fiacail, LL 370b25 . cu feic (.i. ... corrici a fiacail), LL 208a12 ( IT i 162 ). [i]na feic .i. [i]na fiaccail ib. LL 208a 15 . Cf. fiacail .i. ... fecad (leg. fecca ?) na hóile iad, Corm. Y 613 s.v. fiacail.

n f. earlier n s. ól = O.Ir. oal, óil being strictly d s. g s. óile. na hoili , Corm. Y 1284. n du. da óil , LL 166a13 . n p. óli, LL 104a2 ( TBC-LL¹ 6148 ), LL 237a49 . g p. óol, Metr. Dinds. iv 224.2 . Later pronounced oíl; aoil `the mouth, the cheeks', O'R. ? áeil f. IGT Dec. § 14.10 .

The cheek, esp. the part near the mouth. áil (? aíl), gl. bucca, Ir. Gl. 91. leth-ail, gl. māla, 90 . dona hóilib, gl. buccis, Gild. Lor. 115 (distinguished from `gruad' = gena, 114 ). srengais in n-ól don fidba chnáma, TBC-LL¹ 2606 , cf. TBC-LL¹ 1943 ( = in aoil, St.). sruth lomma for in dara n-oil dō ┐ sruth folae forsinn oil ailiu, Cáin Ad. § 7. ell n-ailgen issindara hoil dó, cubur fola . . . issind óil aile, LL 267b9 ( MU 26.32 ). con- sáife cách a óil fria cheile oc sain-ól ┐ oc sain-ithe (sign of selfish greed), RC xxvi 44.3 (ooil, oil v.l.). rige óile distention of the cheek (a practice of the `crossán'), Triads 116 ( .i. pluice ag síneadh a beóil, p. 39 ). fiacail . . . fecad na hóile iad, Corm. Y 613 . óil re hóil cheek by jowl (at close quarters), ZCP x 32.27 . aghaid . . . co cuirri gruaide, co tuilli oile, co luimi lecon `with hollow jowls', CCath. 4023. bad mora a óile .i. a dí leacain, Cóir Anm. 4. Of animals: ra bulgsetar a n-óli ┐ a sróna (of bulls), TBC-LL¹ 6148. risna cethaib cubair consnigtis re hoílib na heachraidi, TTebe 2341 , cf. 3066 ( = hoiblibh, oibhlibh, Eg.). im oilib ┐ im smeich an eoin, RC x 74.21 .

The follg. exx. from Laws Comm. are referred in the Glos- sary to this word: Sencha mac Ailella . . . .i. mac in fir ro soed nech o oil no o caingin clain, Laws i 154.33 ; `who turned men from blemished or false covenants', O'Don.; `who turned (per- suaded) everybody by his mouth (eloquence)', Atkinson (the word is an etym. gloss on the first syll. of Ailill and seems = ail `disgrace, reproach'). fria fealmac .i. fria hoilmac .i. frisin mac da tabair a fhoglaim o oil `to whom he communicates his learning by word of mouth' (?), ii 348.17 (cf. 4 oil). mac rindile .i. mac in ti rindes neach o oil, in cainti `who scarifies a person with his tongue', v 204.10 , cf. tech rindile .i. tech in ti aeras o oil, 268.7 ; if these two exx. represent óil, the meaning must be: who scarifies (satirizes) by the cheek, i.e. by raising blisters on his victim's cheek, cf. óil-tend below.

Compd. ? óil-tend: altan .i. ailteind mad dia tecma cheek- cutting, if it so chance, Corm. Y 68. in t-aeil-thenn . . . ro [s]reng canar [Caiar v.l., sic leg.] a Cruachnaibh the cheek- scarifying (i.e. satirizing) which dragged C. out of Cruachu (?), Anecd. ii 66.7 . (allusion to the story of Caier and Néde, Corm. Y 698 ).