Scottish National Dictionary (1700–)
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First published 1941 (SND Vol. II).
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.
BUMMELEERIE, BUM-THE-LEERIE-BUM , BUMBELEERY-BIZZ, n. [′bʌm(b)ɪ′li:ri, ′bʌmðə′li:ri]
1. A stupid fellow.Lnk. 1893 J. Crawford Sc. Verses and Sangs 88:
Great bummeleeries folk ca' men' Wha hae less gumption than a hen.
2. “A refrain; a boy's song” (Bch. 1928 (per Abd.15), bum-the-leerie-bum).
3. “A cry used by children, when they see cows startling, in order to excite them to run about with greater violence. Bizz is an imitation of the sound of the gadfly” (Lth. 1825 Jam.2, bumbeleery-bizz). Known also to Bnff.2 1937.
[From Bum, v.1, and Leerie-la, the crow of a cock. Cf. also leerie(-leerie)-licht-the-lamps s.v. Leerie, n.1, 1.]
