noun
1 an evening gathering for conversation, singing and music-making: But they wadnae go to the pub for it [whisky] they would carry it into the hoose and hae a ceilidh. 19-.
2 an organized session of entertainment which consists of music and Scottish country dancing 20-.
verb to attend a ceilidh as in sense 1: Traveller men nearly always went ceilidh-ing to the bothy when they were near a farm. 20-. etymology: Gaelic cēilidh ‘a visit; a diversion; a concert’; the Modern Scots meaning is always sense 2; attested by DC, BS in TDITA, JS, SS, BW and DW note:
Attested by Canadian Paul Pope (2013) with his definition of, ‘party, singing, dancing and stories’.