Scottish National Dictionary (1700–)
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First published 1965 (SND Vol. VI). Includes material from the 2005 supplement.
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.
Quotation dates: 1895, 1991
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MURMELL, v. Also murmelt (Ork.). To coo or crow like a baby (Cld. 1880 Jam.), vbl.n. murmlin, cooing or crowing; to grumble, lament over (Ork. 1922 J. Firth Reminisc. 153).Ork. 1895 Chambers's Jnl. (1 June) 349:
She "murmelted sorely," to use an old Orcadian phrase, the hard fate which so rudely parted her from her Johnnie.Lnk. 1991 Duncan Glen Selected Poems 9:
And on the waw the bress airm
O the licht is swung oot
And mantles murmellin and lowin
Ahint gloves I mind o as a bairn.
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"Murmell v.". Dictionary of the Scots Language. 2004. Scottish Language Dictionaries Ltd. Accessed 18 Dec 2025 <http://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/snd/murmell>
