Scottish National Dictionary (1700–)
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First published 1965 (SND Vol. VI).
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.
Quotation dates: 1824, 1881-1923
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OBERIN, n. Also -ing, obran, and pl. forms oberins, obrance, with double pl. obrances. [′ob(ə)rɪn]
1. A trifle; in pt., odds and ends, trifling work (Uls. 1880 Patterson Gl.), leavings, scraps (Kcd. 1964).Abd. 1923 Swatches o' Hamespun 7:
Mr. Wight sent me a sample of how an "aul' wifie 'at keepit a squeelie at Aul'fat" summoned her highest class. "Noo a' you testamentals, lay bye yer obrances an' come yer wa's in." . . . An old lady, making a call, said she was going to a sale of work. "Aw've a sma' obran in ma bit basketie."
2. A trifle of news, a hint, an inkling.Gall. 1824 MacTaggart Gallov. Encycl. 367:
I gat the obering o' a wadding that's to happen soon.Gall. 1881 L. B. Walford Dick Netherby xv.:
Thon nicht that you an' me had the first obering o' what was like to be.
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"Oberin n.". Dictionary of the Scots Language. 2004. Scottish Language Dictionaries Ltd. Accessed 9 Feb 2026 <http://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/snd/oberin>
