Scottish National Dictionary (1700–)
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First published 1952 (SND Vol. III).
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.
Quotation dates: 1750, 1821, 1883-1898
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CRUM, n. A Sc. spelling of Eng. crumb; also prevalent in Eng. to end of 18th cent. (N.E.D.). Sc. usage: a small particle of anything in a lit. sense (Sc. 1825 Jam.2, Bnff.2, Abd.9, Fif.10, Kcb.10 1941). This sense has been obs. in St. Eng. since 17th cent. (N.E.D.), although still in use in Eng. dial. (E.D.D.). Also dim. crummie (Ags. 1894 J. B. Salmond My Man Sandy (1899) xvi.). [krʌm]Sc. c.1750 H. G. Graham Soc. Life Scot. 18th Cent. (1899) I. 106:
Their frugal orgies, where they ordered "a crum o' tripe, twa three peas, and bit lug o' haddock."Sc. 1883 R. L. Stevenson Treasure Island (1886) xiv.:
His eye . . . gleaming like a crumb of glass.Bch. 1898 J. R. Imray Sandy Todd vii.:
Ye'll bide an' tak' a crum sipper wi's.Ags. 1821 J. Nevay Poems 34:
An ingan sappy, or a leek, Gies them a zestie, An crum o' butter mak's them sleek, An' unco tastie.Edb. 1894 P. H. Hunter J. Inwick ii.:
It was that mischancy crum o' paper spiled my speech, deil hae't.
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"Crum n.". Dictionary of the Scots Language. 2004. Scottish Language Dictionaries Ltd. Accessed 12 Dec 2025 <http://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/snd/crum>
