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hickey

or hick·ie

[ hik-ee ]
/ ˈhɪk i /
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noun
Slang.
  1. a pimple.
  2. a reddish mark left on the skin by a passionate kiss.
any device or gadget whose name is not known or is momentarily forgotten.
Electricity. a fitting used to mount a lighting fixture in an outlet box or on a pipe or stud.
a tool used to bend tubes and pipes.
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Origin of hickey

An Americanism dating from 1905–10 of obscure origin; senses under def. 1 perhaps a separate word, though the development “device,” from “defective device,” from “defect, blemish, mark” is also possible; cf. doohickey
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use hickey in a sentence

  • Kekewich and Hickie had combined their forces at the beginning of February.

    The Great Boer War|Arthur Conan Doyle
  • In fact, but for the interest taken by General Hickie it would have been impossible.

    The Irish on the Somme|Michael MacDonagh
  • Cuthbert, seedy, was relieved by Hickie in command of the 13th Brigade to-day.

  • Before his fall he had despatched his staff officer, Major Hickie, to hurry up men from the rear.

    The Great Boer War|Arthur Conan Doyle

British Dictionary definitions for hickey

hickey
/ (ˈhɪkɪ) /

noun
US and Canadian informal an object or gadget: used as a name when the correct name is forgotten, etc; doodah
US and Canadian informal a mark on the skin, esp a lovebite
printing a spot on a printed sheet caused by an imperfection or a speck on the printing plate

Word Origin for hickey

C20: of unknown origin
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
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