smeddum

noun

1. (uncountable)Fine powder; flour.
2. (uncountable)The powder or finest part of ground malt.
3. (uncountable)Smitham.
4. (Scotland, uncountable)Zest, energy; pluck; sagacity; quickness of apprehension; gumption; spirit; mettle.

   ““Don’t like the name, don’t like it. There’s no smeddum to it. Besides, it makes me think of my Aunt Jinny. She called her three girls Faith, Hope, and Charity. Faith didn’t believe in anything—Hope was a born pessimist—and Charity was a miser.[…]””

   “maybe there were better folk far in Segget, but few enough with smeddum like his.”

5. (Northern-England, UK, dialectal, uncountable)Ore small enough to pass through the wire bottom of a sieve.
6. (Northern-England, UK, dialectal, uncountable)A layer of clay or shale between two beds of coal.