"Bogle" has a dual significance in Scots: a supernatural being used to frighten, and a flirtatious game of hide-and-seek or mock-terror played among young people. Elliot's reference to playing "bogle" among the stacks captures the innocent courtship of rural evenings, where lads and lasses would tease each other under cover of darkness. The word's playful sense is crucial here, as its loss signals the death of light-hearted romance. In folklore and poetry, bogles embody both fear and fun, and the term's flexibility allows Elliot to evoke a rich cultural practice. By noting that this game no longer occurs, she deepens the lament for a vanished social world.

"Bogle" possesses a fascinating duality in Scots usage, encompassing both supernatural terror and innocent play. In its primary sense, a bogle is a ghost, goblin, or frightening spectre, often associated with specific locations like old bridges, lonely lanes, or abandoned buildings. This usage appears in folk tales and cautionary verse, where bogles serve as warnings against wandering alone at night or trespassing in forbidden places. However, "bogle" also appears in the context of "playing bogle," a flirtatious game of hide-and-seek or mock-fright that young people would play in the evening darkness, using the thrill of fear as a pretext for courtship. This dual meaning is central to understanding Jean Elliot's use of the term in "A Lament for Flodden": the line "'Bout stacks wi' the lasses at bogle to play" evokes a scene of innocent, joyful courtship, and its absence signals the death of romance and youthful high spirits. For poetry students, this duality offers a rich opportunity to discuss how Scots vocabulary often carries multiple, layered meanings that depend heavily on context. The word's etymology is uncertain, possibly deriving from a Celtic root, and it has cognates in other British dialects. In teaching, contrasting the fearful and playful senses of "bogle" can illuminate how poets exploit linguistic ambiguity to create emotional depth.