buzzer

noun

Etymology: Etymology tree English buzz Proto-Indo-European *-yósder. Proto-Italic *-āzijos Latin -āriusnom. Latin -āriusbor. Proto-Germanic *-ārijaz Proto-West Germanic *-ārī Old English -ere Middle English -ere English -er English buzzer From buzz + -er.

1. One who, or that which, buzzes; an insect that buzzes.

   “And wants not buzzers to infect his ear / With pestilent speeches of his father's death.”

   “... it left, however, a bee at his ear and an itch to transfer the buzzer's attentions and tease his darling; for she had betrayed herself as right good game.”

2. A device that makes a buzzing sound.

   “If you think you know the answer to the question, hit the buzzer as fast as you can.”

   “If a train enters the forward section before its description has been transmitted, a "not described" lamp is illuminated on the transmitter, an alarm buzzer is sounded, and the lamp remains alight until a description has been transmitted.”

3. A police badge.

   “I flipped my wallet open on her desk and let her look at the buzzer pinned to the flap.”

4. A run scored from an overthrow.
5. A pickpocket.

   “The pickpocket was a Buzzer. The man who booked a room at a hotel, and went round the rooms of other guests, was a Snoozer.”

   “[…] a 'buzzer', for whom picking pockets was an art […]”

6. A gossip.

   “Her brother is in secret come from France, Feeds on this wonder, keeps himself in clouds And wants not buzzers to infect his ear With pestilent speeches of his father's death.”