What is "limer"

Limer \Lim"er\ (l[imac]m"[~e]r), n. A limehound; a limmer.
--Chaucer.

Etymology 1 alt. (context obsolete English) A kind of dog kept on a lead; a bloodhound; a mongrel. n. (context obsolete English) A kind of dog kept on a lead; a bloodhound; a mongrel. Etymology 2

n. Someone who limes; someone who uses bird-lime or who limewashes. Etymology 3

n. (context West Indies English) Someone who hangs around the streets; someone hanging out.

A limer, or lymer , was a kind of dog, a scenthound, used on a leash in Medieval times to find large game before it was hunted down by the pack. It was sometimes known as a lyam hound/dog or lime-hound, from the Middle English word lyam meaning 'leash'. The French cognate limier has sometimes been used for the dogs in English as well. The type is not to be confused with the bandog, which was also a dog controlled by a leash, typically a chain, but was a watch dog or guard dog.