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: 1880-1903, 1956
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OOM, v. To appear hazily through mist or darkness, gen. with up (Sh. 1964). Most freq. in vbl. n. oomin, oomund, umond (Jak.):
1. An indistinct appearance or image of anything, e.g. the loom of land through a haze (Sh. 1964).Sh. 1892 Manson's Sh. Almanac:
I saa da oomunds o sometin i da ask bewast wis.
2. In fisherman's lang.: a slight feeling or sensation, as of fish nibbling at the bait (Sh. 1908 Jak. (1928)).Sh. 1903 E.D.D.:
A fisherman while holding his hand-line says that he had "the oomund o' a fish," i.e. by certain signs he concludes that there is a fish at his bait, though he has not got a bite.
3. In gen.: an inkling, suspicion, notion, foreboding.Ork. 1880 Dennison Sketch-Bk. 98:
For t'o' sheu hed nee tryst that nicht, Alinerly wi' ony wicht, Sheu hed a peerie oomin' o'd.Ork. 1956 C. M. Costie Benjie's Bodle 106:
No a star tae be seen ava, an' a kind o' oomin' i' the wind.
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"Oom v.". Dictionary of the Scots Language. 2004. Scottish Language Dictionaries Ltd. Accessed 7 Dec 2025 <http://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/snd/oom_v>
