Bumbler
In Southern and Appalachian speech, a bumbler is a local name for a bumble bee - the big, fuzzy, slow-moving bee that hums through the clover patch.
Hillbilly Dude Says...
'Bumblers' is on that sounds familiar - but I think it's more regional. Hillbilly Dude Says...
'Bumblers' is on that sounds familiar - but I think it's more regional. Pronunciation
[BUM-blur] ~ [BUM-bull bee]
/ˈbʌm.blɚ/
/ˈbʌm.blɚ/
Meaning & Usage
- Bumble Bee (noun, dialectal)
Mamaw:
Look at that bumbler in the honeysuckle.
Look at that bumbler in the honeysuckle.
Papaw:
He don’t sting if you don’t swat him.
He don’t sting if you don’t swat him.★ In the South, "bumbler," "bummel bee," or "bummer bee" can all mean a friendly bumble bee. The name fits the sound - a slow, lazy hum on a warm day. ★
Origin and Etymology
From Middle English bumblen (to buzz). The regional forms "bumbler" and "bummel bee" likely came through Scots-Irish and early frontier speech, where onomatopoeic words were common for insects and sounds.
Usage Notes
Still heard in rural Appalachia and the Deep South. Used affectionately, never pejoratively - these bees are seen as harmless, even neighborly.