Scottish National Dictionary (1700–)
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First published 1941 (SND Vol. II). Includes material from the 1976 supplement.
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.
Quotation dates: 1824-1836
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BULLISTER, Boolastar, n. Also billister.
†1. “A large sloe, wild plum. The name is also applied to the bush on which this fruit grows” (w.Sc. 1887 Jam.6; Gall. 1824 MacTaggart Gallov. Encycl. 100; w.Dmf. 1899 J. Shaw Country Schoolmaster 345). Prunus spinosa.Gall. 1824 Old Song in MacTaggart Gallov. Encycl. 411:
O! sourer than the green bullister, Is a kiss o' Robin-a-Ree.Dmf. 1836 A. Cunningham Lord Roldan III. i.:
He hasna a heart bigger than a billister.
2. “A potato apple” (e.Rs.1 1929, boolastar).
[O.Sc. bulister, a wild plum tree, 1526 (D.O.S.T.); E.M.E. bullester, bolaster (1500). Phs. a reduced form of bolas tre (c.1440) (see N.E.D. s.v. bullace); O.Fr. (13th cent.) beloce, wild plum (Hatz. and Darm.).]You may wish to vary the format shown below depending on the citation style used.
"Bullister n.". Dictionary of the Scots Language. 2004. Scottish Language Dictionaries Ltd. Accessed 9 Apr 2026 <http://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/snd/bullister>
