Yankee

American  

[yang-kee] / ˈjæŋ ki /

noun

• Yankees
  plural

1. a native or inhabitant of the United States.

2. a native or inhabitant of New England.

3. a native or inhabitant of a northern U.S. state, especially of one of the northeastern states that sided with the Union in the American Civil War.

4. a federal or northern soldier in the American Civil War.

5. a word used in communications to represent the letter Y.

6. Military. the NATO name for a class of streamlined, nuclear-powered Soviet submarines, with 16 multiple-warhead ballistic missiles: first produced for the Soviet Navy in the 1960s; in service with the Russian Navy 1992–95.

---

adjective

1. of, relating to, or characteristic of a Yankee or Yankees.

   Yankee ingenuity.

Yankee British  

/ ˈjæŋkɪ /

noun

1. derogatory a native or inhabitant of the US; American

2. a native or inhabitant of New England

3. a native or inhabitant of the Northern US, esp a Northern soldier in the Civil War

4. communications a code word for the letter y

5. finance a bond issued in the US by a foreign borrower

---

adjective

1. of, relating to, or characteristic of Yankees

Yankee Cultural  

1. Originally a nickname for people from New England, now applied to anyone from the United States. Even before the American Revolutionary War, the term Yankee was used by the British to refer, derisively, to the American colonists. Since the Civil War, American southerners have called all northerners Yankees. Since World War I, the rest of the world has used the term to refer to all Americans.

---

Discover More

The expression “Yankee, go home” reflects foreign resentment of American presence or involvement in other nations' affairs.

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• Yankees
  plural

Etymology

Origin of Yankee

An Americanism dating back to 1680–90 of uncertain origin; perhaps back formation from Dutch Jan Kees “John Cheese,” nickname (mistaken for plural) applied by the Dutch of colonial New York to English settlers in Connecticut

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Yankee Yankees

This week the Tampa Bay Rays rolled into big, bad Yankee Stadium, put their feet on the couch, and swept the passive, punchless Pinstripes out of the postseason.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 9, 2026

Schlittler faced two additional batters and recorded another out, pushing his pitch total up to 117—the highest by a Yankee in any game in more than four years.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 1, 2026

Daddy Yankee and Luis Fonsi's Despacito remix, featuring Justin Bieber, tied the record in 2017; then Lil Nas X's Old Town Road surpassed it the following year, eventually spending 19 weeks at the top.

From BBC ● Sep. 22, 2026

The historical irony here is obvious: In attacking Canadian nationhood, Yankee invaders helped to create it.

From Salon ● Aug. 31, 2026

Ernie Eco was wearing my Yankee jacket from Joe Pepitone.

From "Okay for Now" by Gary D. Schmidt

On the afternoon of Game 4, with the New York Yankees looking to beat Derek Lowe and sweep the Sox, Boston’s Kevin Millar stepped on the field at Fenway Park and issued a warning.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 15, 2026

No team since the 1923 New York Yankees has been swept by a postseason opponent one year and beaten that same opponent the next October, and those Yankees had Babe Ruth.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 13, 2026

Some saw the move as a snub to the Yankees and George Steinbrenner.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 10, 2026

He went into the Baseball Hall of Fame as a Padre—the first ever—which was seen as a snub to the Yankees and Steinbrenner.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 8, 2026

Among the Yankees pouring down to the border was Charles Howard.

From "Seabiscuit: An American Legend" by Laura Hillenbrand