biddy

See also: Biddy and Biddie

English

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈbɪdi/
• Rhymes: -ɪdi

Etymology 1

Derived from Biddy, diminutive form of Bridget. It became a generic name for an Irish maid (US), and then for an old woman.

Noun

biddy (plural biddies)

1. (derogatory) A woman, especially an old woman; especially one regarded as fussy or mean or a gossipy busybody.
2. (uncommon) An attractive girl.
4. (archaic, colloquial) An Irish maidservant.
5. (by extension, derogatory) An Irishwoman.
6. A name used in calling a hen or chicken, often as "biddy-biddy-biddy".
   • c. 1601–1602, William Shakespeare, Twelfth Night, act 3, scene 4, line 115:

     Ay, biddy, come with me.

   • 1915, Thornton W. Burgess, chapter XI, in The Adventures of Chatterer the Red Squirrel, Boston: Little, Brown, and Company:

     "Well, we'll see about it by and by," said Farmer Brown's boy. "There's the breakfast bell, and I haven't fed the biddies yet."

Translations

a woman, especially an old woman; especially one regarded as fussy or mean or a gossipy busybody

• Czech: ježibaba (cs) f
• German: alte Schachtel (de) f, alte Klatschtante f
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Hungarian: nyanya (hu)
• Romanian: babă (ro) f
• Russian: ста́рая спле́тница f (stáraja splétnica)

an attractive little girl

• Hungarian: pipi (hu)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Russian: мила́шка (ru) f (miláška), цы́почка (ru) f (cýpočka)

a name used in calling a hen or chicken

• French: petit (fr)
• Hungarian: pipi (hu)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Russian: цы́па (ru) f (cýpa)

Etymology 2

Noun

biddy (plural biddies)

1. (US) Alternative spelling of bitty