limey
Americannoun
-
a British sailor.
-
a British ship.
-
a British person.
adjective
noun
-
a British person
-
a British sailor or ship
adjective
Sensitive Note
This term (and the earlier lime-juicer ) was probably first applied by Americans to British sailors, used with disparaging intent and perceived as insulting. Historically, it also referred to a British immigrant in Australia. Later it became a more neutral nickname for any British person.
Etymology
Origin of limey
First recorded in 1885–90; see origin at lime-juicer, -y 2
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Or make a meal of appetizers and salads: consider bright, refreshing, limey chicken or pork laab with lots of purple-edged shallot, sweet onion and peppery scallions.
From Seattle Times • May 20, 2022
It tasted like creamy and minty and limey and — hallelujah! — generally delicious.
From Washington Post • Feb. 8, 2022
For a make-ahead, crowd-friendly drink, make this limey panela punch.
From Salon • Jul. 12, 2021
Soft or crunchy tortillas, fresh cilantro, limey radishes and onions and the rest of that jalapeño, if you like it hot.
From New York Times • Oct. 26, 2018
Not far away a stream flows out of a limey cave, rushes to the edge, and plunges off.
From "On the Far Side of the Mountain" by Jean Craighead George
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
