Scots Dictionary: The perfect wee guide to the Scots language. Collins Dictionaries

example of its kind, usually one which is bigger or better than normal. In particular, a cold but dry and sunny winter day is often referred to as a beezer.

      behouchie (ba-hooCH-ee) or bahookie (ba-hook-ee) The behouchie is an informal, usually jocular, name for the backside: Sit on your behouchie, you! [It is probably a combination of behind and hough, the Scots word for a thigh]

      bell The Bells is the name traditionally given to the moment at midnight on December 31st when church bells are rung to mark the beginning of the New Year: We always used to go to the Cross for the Bells, but it’s got a bit rowdy these days. When a group of people are drinking in a bar, the person whose turn it is to go and buy the next round of drinks is often said to be on the bell.

      belong to To belong to a town or area is to live there: I belong to Glasgow. In Scotland, people sometimes say that the owner of an object belongs to that object, rather than the object belonging to the person: Who belongs to this coat?

      belt The belt, also known as the tawse, was a leather strap with which schoolchildren were struck on the hand for punishment. Its use is now illegal: I got six of the belt for fighting. To belt a child was to punish them by hitting them on the hand with such a strap.

      Beltane (bell-tane) Beltane is an old Celtic fire festival which originally took place on the first or third of May. It was also a former term day, again on the first or third of May. In Peebles, Beltane is also the name given to the festivities accompanying the Riding of the Marches, which are held in late June. [The word comes from the Gaelic belltainn]

      beltie (bell-ti) A beltie is an informal name for the belted Galloway, a variety of Galloway cattle which is black at the front and rear but has a white band round its middle. They are most common in Galloway in the extreme Southwest of Scotland, where they were first bred.

      ben 1 A ben is a mountain. Ben is often used as part of the name of a mountain, such as Ben Nevis or Ben Lomond. [In this sense the word comes from Gaelic, where it is spelt beinn] 2 Ben also means in, within, or into the inner or main part of a house or other building: Come ben the hoose; She was ben the kitchen making tea. A ben is also the inner or main room of a house, especially that of the old-fashioned two-room cottage known as the but-and-ben.

      Berwickshire (berr-ick-sher or berr-ick-shire) Berwickshire is a historic county in the extreme southeast of Scotland, on the North Sea coast and the border with England. It is now part of the Scottish Borders council area.

      besom (biz-zum) Besom is a derogatory term for a woman or girl: Cheeky wee besom!

      bevvy As in some other parts of Britain, in Scotland any alchoholic drink is sometimes referred to as bevvy. A bevvy is a drinking session, and a particularly drunken one is sometimes called a heavy bevvy: It’s just another excuse for a good bevvy. To bevvy is to drink alcohol, and hence, someone who is drunk is sometimes said to be bevvied. [The word is an informal shortening of beverage]

      Bhoys

      Bhoys (boys) Celtic football team and its supporters are sometimes referred to as the Bhoys. [This is a mock Gaelic spelling of Boys which reflects the team’s origin among Glasgow’s Irish community]

      bide To bide in a place is to live there: They were biding in a flat near the harbour. To bide in a state or condition is to remain in it: We’re no awa to bide awa. To be able to bide a person or thing is to be able to endure or tolerate it. This sense is usually used in the negative, indicating that something is intolerable: I cannae bide that man. To bide by a decision is to comply with it, even if you disagree with it: Party officials announced that they would bide by the outcome of the ballot. The past tense can be either bided, bid, or bode, and the past participle bided or bade.

      bidie-in (bide-ee-in) Someone’s bidie-in is the person who is living with them as their husband or wife although they are not formally married. The word is originally from the Aberdeen area, but is now heard elsewhere in Scotland: The other significant person in McCafferty’s life is Joanna, the woman he fondly describes as his ‘bidie-in’.

      biggin or bigging A biggin is a slightly old-fashioned word for a building: A sweet old granny came toddling up the brae to the biggin. In particular, the outbuildings and labourers’ cottages on a farm or estate are sometimes referred to collectively as the biggins.

      bike A variant spelling of byke.

      bile To bile is to boil. A fairly rude way of informing someone that they should go away, or that they are talking rubbish, is to tell them to bile their heid.

      biling A biling of vegetables, especially potatoes, is enough of them to do for one meal; a Northeastern word. Biling also means very hot: Can ye no open a windae? It’s biling in here. See also boiling.

      billy A billy is an old-fashioned word for a man or lad, often implying that the person is a friend or workmate.

      Billy or Billy Boy In the Glasgow area, a Billy is an informal name for a Protestant, as in the sectarian football chant which begins Oh I’d rather be a Billy than a Tim. [The term is probably from the name of the Protestant King William III, who defeated the deposed Catholic King James VII (James II of England) in the late 17th century]

      bing A bing is a large hill-like mound of waste from a mine or quarry: Large oil-shale bings disfigured the countryside.

      binger (bing-er) A binger is a West Central Scottish slang term for a losing bet, especially one on an unsuccessful racehorse.

      birk A birk is a birch tree.

      birl To birl is to spin or revolve: She watched the clothes birling round in the washing machine.

      birse (birss) To have or get one’s birse up is to be or become angry or annoyed. [The phrase comes from an earlier sense of birse meaning bristle]

      bit 1 In parts of South and West Scotland, the place where someone lives is known as their bit: Can Kirsty come out and play at my bit? 2 A bit is a boot.

      black-affrontit (black a-frunt-it) or black-affronted To be black-affrontit is to be very embarrassed or offended by something.

      black bun Despite its name, black bun is not actually a bun, but is a type of very rich dark fruitcake covered in pastry, which is traditionally eaten at New Year.

      blackening A blackening is a type of pre-wedding ritual carried out in some areas where the bride or groom is smeared with mud, treacle, or some similar dark-coloured substance and then often paraded through the streets by their friends.

      black house

      black house A black house is a type of thatched house formerly found in