buddy

See also: Buddy

English

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈbʌd.i/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ʌdi

Etymology 1

First appears c. 1788, in the writings of Charles Dibdin, of uncertain origin. Possibly from *bruddy, *bruthy, a child-talk alteration of brother. Alternatively, perhaps from British colloquial butty (“companion”), also the form of an older dialect term meaning workmate, associated with coal mining. Itself believed derived from 1530 as booty fellow, a partner with whom one shares booty or loot. Alternatively, compare Scots buddo, bodda (“buddy, kiddo, dear”), related to Icelandic budda (“purse"; also "short, stout person”).

Noun

buddy (plural buddies)

1. A friend or casual acquaintance.

   Synonyms: bud, mate; see also Thesaurus:friend

   They have been buddies since they were in school.

   • 1951 July 16, J[erome] D[avid] Salinger, The Catcher in the Rye, Boston, Mass.: Little, Brown and Company, →OCLC, page 23:

     He told us we ought to think of Jesus as our buddy and all. He said he talked to Jesus all the time. Even when he was driving his car. That killed me.

2. A partner for a particular activity.

   Synonyms: companion, partner

   drinking buddies

   training buddies [mentor/mentee]

3. An informal and friendly address to a stranger, usually male; a friendly (or occasionally antagonistic) placeholder name for a person one does not know.

   Synonyms: mate, fellow

   Hey, buddy, I think you dropped this.

Pronoun

buddy

1. (Maritime English) A person far removed from the conversation.

   I found some earphones in the pocket, buddy must have been pissed.

   Buddy's loaded. 'Got like three houses.

Derived terms

• accountability buddy
• asshole buddy
• battle buddy
• birthday buddy
• blowbuddy
• blow-buddy
• blow buddy
• bosom buddy
• bud
• buddy bench
• buddy block
• buddy booth
• buddy boy
• buddy breathe
• buddy-buddy
• buddy cop
• buddy film
• buddyhood
• buddyish
• buddy list
• buddy memory allocation
• buddy movie
• buddyness
• buddy pack
• buddy parent
• buddy parenting
• buddy pod
• buddy punching
• Buddyroll
• buddyroo
• buddyslash
• buddy store
• buddy system
• buddy taping
• buddy up
• buddy wrapping
• bus buddy
• buttbuddy
• butt buddy
• cuddle buddy
• cut buddy
• cyberbuddy
• e-buddy
• fuck buddy
• quit buddy
• study buddy
• trollbuddy

Translations

friend or casual acquaintance

• Catalan: company (ca) m
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 哥兒 / 哥儿 (zh) (gēr), 伙伴 (zh) (huǒbàn)

• Dutch: maat (nl) m, maatje (nl) n
• Finnish: kaveri (fi), toveri (fi), tuttava (fi), kaverus
• French: compagnon (fr) m, pote (fr) m, copain (fr) m
• Georgian: ძმობილი (ʒmobili), ამხანაგი (amxanagi), მეგობარი (megobari), ძმაკაცი (ʒmaḳaci)
• German: Kumpel (de) m
• Hungarian: haver (hu)
• Indonesian: sobat (id)
• Italian: amico (it) m
• Japanese: 仲間 (ja) (なかま, nakama), 相棒 (ja) (あいぼう, aibō)
• Khmer: សំលាញ់ (sɑmlienh), សម្លាញ់ (km) (sɑmlañ)
• Louisiana Creole French: boug, nèg, padna, djæk, vye
• Ottoman Turkish: گوڭلداش (gönüldaş)
• Persian: رفیق (fa) (rafiq)
• Plautdietsch: Schlockat m
• Polish: kumpel (pl) m
• Portuguese: companheiro (pt) m
• Russian: дружо́к (ru) m (družók), прия́тель (ru) m (prijátelʹ)
• Serbo-Croatian: друшкан m, druškan (sh) m
• Spanish: compañero (es) m, acompañante (es) m or f, camarada (es) m or f, cuate (es) m, amiguete (es) m, parcero (es) m, cousín m (Nicaragua), asere (es) m (Cuba), acere (es) m, causa (es) m or f, amigui m or f, pata (es) m or f (colloquial)
• Swedish: kompis (sv) c, polare (sv) c
• Turkish: ahbap (tr)

partner for a particular activity

• Finnish: kaveri (fi), toveri (fi)
• French: copain (fr) m, pote (fr) m or f
• German: Kollege (de) m
• Hungarian: cimbora (hu), pajtás (hu)
• Italian: compagno (it) m, amico (it) m
• Japanese: ^{(please verify)} 友達 (ja) (ともだち, tomodachi)
• Khmer: សំលាញ់ (sɑmlienh)
• Polish: kolega (pl) m
• Portuguese: colega (pt) m or f
• Russian: коллега (ru) m or f (kollega)
• Spanish: colega (es) m or f, compinche (es) m or f

informal address to a stranger

• Armenian: ախպեր (hy) (axper), ապեր (hy) (aper)
• Catalan: amic (ca) m
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 老表 (zh) (lǎobiǎo), 老兄 (zh) (lǎoxiōng)

• Dutch: maat (nl) m, kerel (nl) m, vriend (nl) m
• Finnish: kaveri (fi)
• French: camarade (fr) m, mec (fr) m
• German: Kumpel (de) m
• Italian: capo (it) m
• Polish: kolega (pl) m, koleś (pl) m, morda (pl) m
• Portuguese: parceiro (pt) m
• Russian: прия́тель (ru) m (prijátelʹ), дружи́ще (ru) m (družíšče), друг (ru) m (drug)
• Serbo-Croatian: друшкан m, druškan (sh) m
• Spanish: colega (es) m or f, amigo (es) m, amiga (es) f, tío (es) m
• Swedish: grabben (sv) c (definite form), vännen (sv) c (definite form)

Verb

buddy (third-person singular simple present buddies, present participle buddying, simple past and past participle buddied)

1. (transitive) To assign a buddy, or partner, to.
   • 2007, Philip Briggs, Danny Edmunds, Mozambique: The Bradt Travel Guide‎^[1], →ISBN, page 86:

     If you are being formally buddied, have a good chat with your buddy and find out their interests -- these should more or less match your own.

Derived terms

• buddy-up

Etymology 2

From Middle English buddy, buddi, equivalent to bud +‎ -y.

Adjective

buddy (comparative more buddy, superlative most buddy)

1. Resembling a bud.
   • 1963, John Herbert Goddard, Chrysanthemum Growers' Treasury, page 18:

     Some of the dwarfer varieties are full of buddy growths in the early stages and these must be cut down and thrown away.