Yibbing? - Anybody?

[LightDrizzle]

I’m wondering where on earth this comes from as internet searches draw a blank. I think my mum used it and she came from the Dales and the northeast.

It’s used for someone complaining, resisting or protesting in a slightly fearful, tetchy or cowardly way, eg., Sainz needs to get the overtake done but he’s yibbing about it.

Has anyone else heard or used this or have I just made it up?!

I've never heard of it! No idea what 'get the overtake done' means either though...

@AllProperTeaIsTheft - sorry, it’s a Formula 1 reference. Overtaking is dangerous so yibbing about it would be him hesitating or complaining over the radio about something rather than getting it done.

I was crap at learning to ride a bike without stabilisers and after a certain point my mum or grandma might have said, “Stop yibbing about it and get on with it.”

It’s just occurred to me that I don’t think I hear it generally so I Googled it and … crickets.

Ah, I see! Round here (I live in Cumbria, near the Lancs border but come from the SE), people use 'mithering', which is close to how you describe 'yibbing'.

Dithering is closer to how you seem to be using mithering

Mithering I would take as moaning

But in the OP's first post, she describes it as complaining or protesting, rather than just hesitating.

You are right- I am still not thinking straight!

It's because I dither about overtaking - but quietly

To jib (jibbed, jibbing) is a term used for horses (and by extension people) being unwilling to do something, it is probably a local variant of that. In French we say regimber, I wonder if there's a connexion.

Ooh! Thank you @Madamfrog ! I think there’s a likely connection there as my maternal granddad was a groom to Major Somebody and was whipper-in for the Bedale Hunt. He broke and trained horses and worked with them all his life.

He was groom to General Allgood’s horses! Not Major Somebody.

@Madamfrog is right.

My father, born 1918, used the expresion "Never let it be said your mother raised a jibber".

Welsh borders, rural area.

Using 'jibbing' and 'jibber' figuratively about people was natural when horses were everywhere and the term 'jib' was familiar to everyone.