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• paddy
  paddy

  noun

  a rice field.
• Paddy
  Paddy

  noun

  an Irishman or a person of Irish descent.

paddy

¹ American  

[pad-ee] / ˈpæd i /

noun

• paddies
  plural

1. a rice field.

2. rice, especially in the husk, either uncut or gathered.

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Paddy ² American  

[pad-ee] / ˈpæd i /

noun

• Paddies
  plural

1. Slang: Often Offensive. an Irishman or a person of Irish descent.

2. a male given name.

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paddy ¹ British  

/ ˈpædɪ /

noun

1. Also called: paddy field.  a field planted with rice

2. rice as a growing crop or when harvested but not yet milled

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Paddy ² British  

/ ˈpædɪ /

noun

1. (sometimes not capital) an informal, often derogatory, name for an Irishman

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paddy ³ British  

/ ˈpædɪ /

noun

1. informal a fit of temper

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Sensitive Note

This term is used as a neutral nickname or term of address for an Irishman, though it may be perceived as insulting.

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• Paddies
  plural
• paddies
  plural

Etymology

Origin of paddy¹

First recorded in 1590–1600; from Malay padi “unhusked rice”; currency of this word in the English of India perhaps due to early association with Kannada batta, bhatta “unhusked rice” (from Indo-Aryan; compare Hindi, Marathi bhāt “cooked rice,” Sanskrit bhakhta “food, meal”)

Origin of Paddy²

Familiar variant of Irish Padraig Patrick; see -y ²

Explanation

A paddy is a field used for growing rice. Paddies are different from most other crop fields because they are partially flooded with water. If you plan on farming a rice paddy, you'll probably want to invest in a good pair of waterproof boots. There are a few kinds of rice that can grow in dry soil, but most need the soggy soil that a paddy provides. Most rice paddies are located in various parts of Asia, although they can also be found in Spain, Haiti, and the state of California. Another meaning of this word is "unmilled rice." The Malay root of paddy is padi, "rice in the straw."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

paddy Paddy Paddies paddies

Picturesque villages of green paddy fields and houses sat beside vast chunks of land washed away.

From Barron's ● Sep. 4, 2026

"He wakes up almost every two hours and have a screaming paddy which takes almost a hour to get him back to sleep xx."

From BBC ● Jun. 18, 2026

Managed environments such as paddy rice fields and inland waters also contributed significantly.

From Science Daily ● Feb. 10, 2026

A number of them are bordered by mountains, cities or paddy fields, making it harder to break out of the beach perimeter.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 7, 2025

Long before the paddy ripened we came to the end of our dried-fish stocks.

From "Nectar in a Sieve" by Kamala Markandaya

Paddy McGuinness, Zoe Ball and Morgan Burtwistle, better known as Angry Ginge, will each appear as guest judges, setting the celebrities bespoke challenges.

From BBC ● Aug. 17, 2026

He is still officially Britain's Strongest Man after winning the title for a fourth time in February, beating Adam Bishop and Paddy Haynes.

From BBC ● Jul. 20, 2026

Gaethje earned the interim lightweight title in January by defeating Paddy Pimblett by unanimous decision.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 18, 2026

The owner of FanDuel, PokerStars, and Paddy Power said July 31 would be its last day of trading on the LSE.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 12, 2026

I think Paddy likes me because of the raisin and I feel a bit guilty because I wasn’t that generous in the first place.

From "Angela's Ashes: A Memoir" by Frank McCourt

He said when the artist first told him about the idea "he talked about the idea of different Paddies who have all done interesting things".

From BBC ● Mar. 16, 2023

Paddies require enough water to keep rice plants partially submerged to grow.

From Reuters ● Jun. 16, 2015

Paddies were blackened with salt water, the rice crop destroyed.

From Time Magazine Archive

“The toil for Ireland once begun, We never will give o’er, Nor own a land on earth but one— We’re Paddies evermore.”

From The Revival of Irish Literature Addresses by Sir Charles Gavan Duffy, K.C.M.G, Dr. George Sigerson, and Dr. Douglas Hyde by Charles Gavan Duffy

Such subjects as Agriculture, Hokkaido, Labour, Paddies, Rice and Sericulture are indexed at length, but some matters which relate to them and are of general interest appear in the body of the Index.

From The Foundations of Japan Notes Made During Journeys Of 6,000 Miles In The Rural Districts As A Basis For A Sounder Knowledge Of The Japanese People by J.W. Robertson Scott

It offers quiet roads along coastlines and river gorges and into mountains, among rice paddies and through towns with tiled roofs where villagers pride themselves on their Shikoku hospitality.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 6, 2026

So with farmers facing arid brown fields that should be flooded, lush paddies, Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim this week announced cloud-seeding operations to trigger rain.

From Barron's ● May 8, 2026

In the rice paddies of Buri Ram, Thailand, a sarus crane gently cleans its one-week-old chick before lingering in a quiet beak-to-beak moment.

From BBC ● Mar. 25, 2026

During spring, the onset of rice planting necessitates ample water in rice paddies and fields in South Korea.

From Science Daily ● May 20, 2024

Pearly palaces, pink roses, purple birds, and golden rice paddies glowed softly in the light of the kerosene lamps.

From "Rickshaw Girl" by Mitali Perkins