DCHP-2

tayscaun [ˈteˌskən] taiscown, tayscawn DCHP-2 (February 2017)

• n. — Newfoundland, very rare

  a small amount of something.

  Type: 2. Preservation — The term tayscaun describes a small portion or amount of something (see the 1925 and 1937 quotations). It is a preservation from Irish English, deriving from the Gaelic word '"taoscán" (Clarke 2010a: 109), which is defined as "act of flowing, state of being fairly full, a spill or flush, a fair quantity or measure, a small quantity on a large vessel, ... an incomplete load" (see the 1968 quotation). Its original meaning of 'not quite full' or 'incomplete', a relative measurement, appears to have been semantically changed to mean 'not close to full' or 'a small amount'. As seen in Chart 1, the term is most frequently used in Ireland, followed by Canada. Many Irish Gaelic terms in Newfoundland English are now rare or obsolete (see Clarke 2010b: 107).
  See also DNE, s.v. "tayscaun".