Scottish National Dictionary (1700–)
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First published 1941 (SND Vol. II).
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.
Quotation dates: 1825-1830, 1914-1934
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BRAMMEL, BRAM'LE, BRAMLIN, BRAMMIN, Bramloch, n. A striped worm found in old dunghills and leaf-heaps, used as bait for fresh-water fish, esp. trout. Gen.Sc. Also used attrib. [′brɑməl, ′brɑmlɪn, ′brɑmɪn, ′brɑmlɔx]Sc. 1934 D.E.D. in Galloway News (29 Sept.):
A strippit bram'le worm has drappit Doon aff the bank.Abd. 1914 (per Mearns1):
Boys at Huntly fished with bramlins.Slg. 1914 T.S.D.C. I:
bramloch.Rnf.3 1914:
brammel-worm.s.Sc. c.1830 T. Wilkie in Bwk. Naturalists' Club (1916) 67:
The lint must grow in a field which is dunged by the farmyard heap, that has not been removed for forty years, and full of Bramlin.Rxb. 1825 Jam.2:
Bramlin, Brammin, Brammel-worm. A species of speckled or striped worm, found in very old dungheaps, especially where much cheese has been made on the farm.1923 Watson W.-B.
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"Brammel n.". Dictionary of the Scots Language. 2004. Scottish Language Dictionaries Ltd. Accessed 6 Feb 2026 <http://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/snd/brammel>
