dyke

dyke
dike
n
a lesbian. The only common slang term to describe a female homosexual; it was first used derogatorily by heterosexuals, but it is now used by gay women them-selves, though often wryly. When said by a heterosexual the word usually still car-ries overtones of the 'aggressive mascu-line' stereotype of a lesbian. No one has satisfactorily explained the term's ulti-mate origin; it might be from an old pejo-rative euphemism for a woman's genitals. Another, rather far-fetched, theory is that it is inspired by the story of the little Dutch boy with his finger in the dyke. Whatever its origin the word seems to have been imported into British English from Amer-ica between the world wars.

Contemporary slang . 2014.

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  • dyke — [ dik; dajk ] n. m. • 1759; dike 1768; mot angl. « digue » ♦ Géol. Roche éruptive qui fait saillie à la surface du sol et qui affecte la forme d une épaisse muraille ou d une colonne. ⇒ neck. ● dyke nom masculin (anglais dyke, digue) Filon de… …   Encyclopédie Universelle

  • dyke — s.n. (geol.) Filon de lavă injectată şi consolidată în crăpătura unui con vulcanic, care, prin eroziunea terenurilor, rămâne în relief ca un zid. ♦ Dig mic. [pron. daic. / < engl. dyke]. Trimis de LauraGellner, 25.02.2005. Sursa: DN  DYKE… …   Dicționar Român

  • dyke — Ⅰ. dyke [1] (also dike) ► NOUN 1) an embankment built to prevent flooding from the sea. 2) an earthwork serving as a boundary or defence: Offa s Dyke. 3) a ditch or watercourse. 4) Geology an intrusion of igneous rock cutting across existing… …   English terms dictionary

  • Dyke — Dyke, n. See {Dike}. The spelling dyke is restricted by some to the geological meaning. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • dyke — dyke; van·dyke; dyke·reeve; …   English syllables

  • dyke — dyke, dike In the meaning ‘embankment’, dyke is the preferred form. This is also true of the different (slang) word dyke, meaning ‘a lesbian’ …   Modern English usage

  • dyke — (n.) 1931, American English, perhaps a shortening of morphadike, dialectal garbling of HERMAPHRODITE (Cf. hermaphrodite); but bulldyker engage in lesbian activities is attested from 1921, and a source from 1896 lists dyke as slang for the vulva.… …   Etymology dictionary

  • Dyke — (spr. daik), Sir William Hart , Baronet, engl. Staatsmann, geb. 1837, studierte in Oxford und wurde 1865 ins Unterhaus gewählt, wo er der konservativen Partei beitrat. Er war von 1874–80 Sekretär im Schatzamt unter Lord Beaconsfield und fungierte …   Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon

  • Dyke —   [daɪk, englisch] der, (s)/ s, Dike [daɪk], Geologie: Gang …   Universal-Lexikon

  • dyke — dike [daık] n [Sense: 1, 3; Origin: Old English dic ditch, dike ] [Sense: 2; Date: 1900 2000; Origin: Probably from morphadyke male and female person, homosexual (1900 2000), from hermaphrodite] 1.) a wall or bank built to keep back water and… …   Dictionary of contemporary English

  • dyke — [ daık ] noun count 1. ) OFFENSIVE an offensive word for a LESBIAN (=woman who is gay) 2. ) another spelling of dike …   Usage of the words and phrases in modern English

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