Douce* is a Scots word commonly used for someone or something quiet, mild, sedate, or decorous. In Violet Jacob’s poem, it characterizes the sea as calm and still after harvest time, while also reflecting the speaker’s quiet, longing heart. The word therefore carries both a literal sense of peacefulness and an emotional suggestion of restrained feeling.

Douce is primarily a Scots Dialect term, though it may appear in poetry and literary writing that uses Scottish speech. Depending on context, it can mean gentle, quiet, sober, modest, respectable, or well-behaved. In this poem, it applies to the sea rather than a person, so “calm,” “placid,” or “peaceful” are the most suitable translations. It is related to the Scots adjective douc, and ultimately derives from French doux, meaning “soft” or “sweet.” Do not assume that douce always means simply “sweet”; its Scots sense often emphasizes subdued behavior or calmness.