Dictionaries of the Scots Language
Dictionars o the Scots Leid

Scottish National Dictionary (1700–)

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First published 2005 (SND, online supplement).
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.

BEAMER, n. A blushing face as a sign of embarrassment.Dmf. 1979 Ron Butlin in Hamish Whyte and Janice Galloway New Writing Scotland 9: Scream If You Want to Go Faster (1991) 10:
He was going red — he could feel it. A real beamer.Gsw. 1985 Michael Munro The Patter 10:
beamer A bright red blush. 'Ye should've seen her face — what a beamer!'Gsw. 1987 Peter Mason C'mon Geeze Yer Patter! 51:
Ah got a big beamer when ah wis fun oot. I was really blushing when I was caught.Edb. 1989:
What a beamer!Fif. 1989:
Please miss, yer legs hiv got a beamer. (Said to a teacher wearing red tights.)Slg. 1991 Janet Paisley in Tom Hubbard The New Makars 127:
'Ye'll grow oot o it hen.' Aye, aw right. But when.
Ye kin get awfy fed up bein the local beetroot.
So last time ah went oot — tae the disco,
ah bought this white make-up. White lightning it said.
Ah thought nae beamers the night, this stuff'll see me aw right.Edb. 1995 Irvine Welsh Marabou Stork Nightmares (1996) 141:
He held that radge expression and I felt my face go red and I got a bigger beamer than I had in the first place.wm.Sc. 1998 Ciara MacLaverty in Donny O'Rourke and Kathleen Jamie New Writing Scotland 16: The Glory Signs 101:
'God, imagine if it was his boat,' she says, 'mortification or what?' I don't bother asking her the exact meaning of 'mortification' but I guess it roughly means she'd take a beamer.