Snig
To snap off, to lop off, to break off a small piece. 'Snig a bit off the bread for me' = break off a piece. Often used for branches, bread, twigs, or anything that needs a quick clean break.
Etymology
Origin uncertain. Possibly from Scots 'sneg' (a small notch or cut), itself perhaps imitative. Documented as Ulster Scots, with no firmly settled derivation. The action of a quick clean break - more decisive than 'tear', less violent than 'cut' - is the meaning.
In a sentence
"Snig a bit off the loaf there - the dog's been at the heel of it."
Historical notes
Snig is one of the small, precise Ulster Scots verbs that English-elsewhere has to circumlocate. 'Break a piece off' takes four words; 'snig' takes one. The word's particular usefulness is in the implication that the action is quick, intentional, and not destructive of the whole - snigging a piece off does not damage what remains. Heard in farm and garden contexts especially.
Sources
- Macafee, Caroline. A Concise Ulster Dictionary. Oxford University Press, 1996. · dictionary