dicker
1[ dik-er ]
/ ˈdɪk ər /
verb (used without object)
to deal, swap, or trade with petty bargaining; bargain; haggle.
to barter.
to try to arrange matters by mutual bargaining: They dickered for hours over some of the finer points of the contract.
noun
Nearby words
dickcissel, dickens, dickens shunt, dickens, charles, dickensian, dicker, dickerson, dickey, dickey, james, dickeybird, dickhead
Origin of dicker
1First recorded in 1795–1805; perhaps v. use of dicker2
Definition for dicker (2 of 2)
dicker
2[ dik-er ]
/ ˈdɪk ər /
noun
the number or quantity ten, especially a lot of ten hides or skins.
Origin of dicker
21225–75; Middle English diker < Old French dacre, Medieval Latin dikeria; compare Latin decuria decury
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples from the Web for dicker
British Dictionary definitions for dicker
dicker
/ (ˈdɪkə) /
verb
to trade (goods) by bargaining; barter
(intr) to negotiate a political deal
noun
- a petty bargain or barter
- the item or items bargained or bartered
a political deal or bargain
Word Origin for dicker
C12: ultimately from Latin decuria decury; related to Middle Low German dēker lot of ten hides
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Word Origin and History for dicker
dicker
"haggle, bargain in a petty way," 1802, American English, perhaps from dicker (n.) "a unit or package of tens," especially hides (attested from late 13c.), perhaps from Latin decuria "parcel of ten" (supposedly a unit of barter on the Roman frontier; cf. German Decher "set of ten things"), from decem "ten" (see ten) on model of centuria from centum.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper