Mump
September 13th 2025
The Dictionaries of the Scots Language (DSL) tell us that to mump is either, “to utter in an inarticulate manner, to mumble, mutter” or “to grumble, to complain peevishly, to sulk, to mope around.”
An early example of inarticulacy can be found in George Smith’s Douglas Travestie and Miscellaneous Pieces (1824): “I, wi’ right an’ reason on my side, Dare scarcely mump a word”.
Then, in Robert Dinnie’s Songs and Poems (1876): “Is this the lass, whan wee and young, Wha mumpit at her mither tongue, But noo can French and English chat?”.
Using the term for complaining has long been popular. Robert Louis Stevenson advised in his Letters (1883) that “it is better to enjoy a novel than to mump”.
In March 1962, the Banffshire Advertiser included a typical response to mumping: “A’m seek fed up o ye mumpin’ at ma shuther onywye”.
Many of us like to mump and moan, as the Scotsman helpfully illustrates. In December 2001, we were told that “A miserly turn out of just four runners for a Showcase race would normally be a cause for mumping and moaning” at the Kelso races. Then, in May 2023, Dundee United manager Jim Goodwin urged his players not to be spotted “mumping and moaning about the place”.
Finally, in February 2025, the West Lothian Courier reported that one candidate in the Broxburn by-election told locals to come out and vote rather than “stay at home mumping about councillors having lost touch”. This appeal proved unsuccessful, and the final turnout was only 25%.
Dictionaries of the Scots Language would like to thank Bob Dewar for illustrating our Scots Word of the Week feature.
