Scottish National Dictionary (1700–)
Hide Quotations Hide Etymology
About this entry:
First published 1956 (SND Vol. IV).
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.
Quotation dates: 1745, 1817-1929
[0,0,0,0,1,0,0,0,0,0,0,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,0,0,0,0,0,0,0]
GRUNCH, v.1, n. Also gr(o)unge, groonge, gr(o)unche, grunsh, gruntch. [Rxb. gru:nʒ, Ork. grʌnʃ]
I. v., intr. 1. To grumble, complain, grouse, murmur (against) (Sc. 1721 Ramsay Poems (S.T.S.) I., Gl., grounche; Cld. 1880 Jam., grunsh, grunch; Rxb. 1923 Watson W.-B., grounge, groonge; Bwk. 1942 Wettstein; Rxb. 1955). Also in n.Eng. dial.Rxb. 1825 Jam.:
He's ay groungin' about something.s.Sc. 1856 H. S. Riddell St Matthew xx. 11:
An' whan they had receivet it, they grounget agayne the guidman o' the hous.s.Sc. 1897 E. Hamilton Outlaws ii.:
It isna my weird I'm groungeing at ava, but the black injustice o' things.
2. To look sullen or sulky (Rxb. 1825 Jam., gr(o)unge, 1923 Watson W.-B., Rxb. 1955).
3. Of a dog: to growl (Rxb. 1923 Watson W.-B., Rxb. 1955); of a pig: to grunt (Ib., grunch; Ork. 1929 Marw., Ork. 1955). Also fig. and rarely tr.Sc. c.1745 Jacobite Minstr. (1829) 314:
He may grunch in his swine-trough up to the laggies.Fif. 1827 W. Tennant Papistry Storm'd 55:
His pipes wi' sic a squeal did squeak, . . . His drone did gruntch sae dour a sound.s.Sc. 1871 H. S. Riddell Poet. Wks. II. 202:
Sae Johnie [Jack Frost], sair wearied, sae lang out to lounge, Began in impatience to growl and to grounge.Ork. 1929 Marw., Ork. 1955:
Chiefly in Orkney of the little grunting sounds made by a baby asleep: “Hid's lyan grunchan i' the cradle”
II. n. A grumble, grunt, growl (Rxb. 1923 Watson W.-B., Rxb. 1955); “the murmur of a sick child” (Kcb.4 1900).Peb. 1817 R. Brown Lintoun Green 167:
Wi' grusome grunche, as ruefu' rat Made tail-less by a snare.Rxb. 1847 J. Halliday Rustic Bard 259:
When gloamin' comes doon wi' its shadows dark, An' Towzie tells tales wi' his grounge an' bark.Per. 1857 J. Stewart Sketches 116:
Look vastly wise, An' wi' a philosophic grunch on, Thus moralize.
You may wish to vary the format shown below depending on the citation style used.
"Grunch v.1, n.". Dictionary of the Scots Language. 2004. Scottish Language Dictionaries Ltd. Accessed 2 Apr 2026 <http://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/snd/grunch_v1_n>
