“There’s a fine furze bush ah could help ye hing yer draiglet petticoaties oan for tae dry in yonder oot o the way den ye ken.”

Translate:

draiglet, draigelt: wet, drenched.

“There is a fine gorse bush where I could assist you to hange your soaked petticoats up to dry in that out of the way narrow valley with trees over there you know.”

dreglıt

Forward. Burns ‘being forward’ as was his wont.

…

O, Jenny’s a’ weet, poor body,
Jenny’s seldom dry:
She draigl’t a’ her petticoatie,
Comin thro’ the rye!

Chorus:
Comin thro’ the rye, poor body,
Comin thro’ the rye,
She draigl’t a’ her petticoatie,
Comin thro’ the rye!

Gin a body meet a body
Comin thro’ the rye,
Gin a body kiss a body,
Need a body cry?

Gin a body meet a body
Comin thro’ the glen,
Gin a body kiss a body,
Need the warl’ ken?

Gin a body meet a body
Comin thro’ the grain;
Gin a body kiss a body,
The thing’s a body’s ain.

Ilka lassie has her laddie,
Nane, they say, ha’e I
Yet all the lads they smile on me,
When comin’ thro’ the rye.

R. Burns

Like many so called children’s songs the lyrics take on another life when sung in the company of adults in the evening.

As well as a grain, Rye is the name of a river in Ayrshire, Burn’s home turf.

The Scottish Word: draiglet with its definition and its meaning illustrated and captioned with the word used in context in the Scots language and in English.