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• dickey
  dickey

  noun

  an article of clothing made to look like the front or collar of a shirt, blouse, vest, etc., worn as a separate piece under another garment, as a jacket or dress.
• Dickey
  Dickey

  noun

  James, 1923–97, U.S. poet and novelist.

dickey

¹ American  

[dik-ee] / ˈdɪk i /

Or dicky,

noun

• dickeys
  plural

1. an article of clothing made to look like the front or collar of a shirt, blouse, vest, etc., worn as a separate piece under another garment, as a jacket or dress.

2. a detachable linen shirt collar.

3. a bib or pinafore worn by a child.

4. a small bird.

5. a donkey, especially a male.

6. an outside seat on a carriage.

7. British. rumble seat.

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dickey ² American  

[dik-ee] / ˈdɪk i /

adjective

Chiefly British Slang.

1. not working properly; faulty.

   I'm fed up with this dickey air conditioner.

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Dickey ³ American  

[dik-ee] / ˈdɪk i /

noun

1. James, 1923–97, U.S. poet and novelist.

2. William Bill, 1907–93, U.S. baseball player.

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• dickeys
  plural

Etymology

Origin of dickey¹

First recorded in 1745–55; generic use of Dicky, diminutive of Dick, proper name

Origin of dickey²

First recorded in 1805–15; origin uncertain

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

dickey Dickey dickeys

Now, in time for fall layering, the dickey comes in luxury fabrics and stylish prints.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 16, 2015

She has used a dickey countless times on photo shoots, she says, because it “ties together things quite nicely but doesn’t bulk up or change the silhouette.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 16, 2015

At the presentation of the Veronica Beard Spring 2016 collection in New York Tuesday, a model with her brunette hair slicked back posed in a chambray stretch-linen jacket and a satin straight-collared dickey.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 16, 2015

She had a short tawny coat, a dickey of shaggy hair and horns roughly the size and shape of large plantains.

From New York Times ● Jul. 3, 2014

Jane, after some hesitation, eventually decided that a white dickey would be just the thing for Mr. Banks, and she bought Robinson Crusoe for the Twins to read when they grew up.

From "Mary Poppins" by P. L. Travers

“We do this for CJ, for every young man on that team, and anyone who comes after him, and anyone at any university,” Nicole Dickey told ESPN.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 8, 2026

Blink customer William Dickey decided to test the system’s AI prowess at his home in Cushing, Maine, by donning horror-movie masks from his collection, said his wife, April Dickey.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 5, 2026

Just raising the possibility of such a withdrawal carries a stigma, Dickey adds.

From MarketWatch ● May 1, 2026

“We’re seeing an increase in hardship in general,” said Kelsa Dickey, a Phoenix-based money coach.

From MarketWatch ● May 1, 2026

The word that clings to every hiker’s thoughts in north Georgia is Deliverance, the 1970 novel by James Dickey that was made into a Hollywood movie.

From "A Walk in the Woods" by Bill Bryson

She knew how to poke fun at pious men in frilly dickeys, and rhapsodize on the pleasures found in everyday life.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 27, 2026

This year, she designed dickeys that should be in full view, like over a long-sleeve T-shirt.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 16, 2015

Fur and novelty things with fur, such as the fur dickeys we saw at Celine.

From Seattle Times ● Mar. 16, 2011

There were odd leather dickeys reminiscent of medieval breastplates and knee-length vests made of fur on the ventral side and quilted cotton on the reverse.

From New York Times ● Jan. 20, 2010

Nightcaps, dickeys and drawers danced the minuet; stockings, skirts, collars, handkerchiefs waltzed thicker and thicker around the sleeping girl.

From Walter Pieterse A Story of Holland by Multatuli