|
|
Definition of Peckish
1. Adjective. Somewhat hungry.
Similar to: Hungry
2. Adjective. Easily irritated or annoyed. "Not the least nettlesome of his countrymen"
Similar to: Ill-natured
Derivative terms: Crank, Crankiness, Fractiousness, Irritability, Irritability, Peevishness, Pettishness, Petulance, Testiness, Tetchiness
Definition of Peckish
1. a. Inclined to eat; hungry.
Definition of Peckish
1. Adjective. (colloquial) mildly hungry1860. John Camden Hotten. ''[ A dictionary of modern slang, cant, and vulgar words]'' page 188. ¹
2. Adjective. (colloquial) irritable; crotchety ¹
3. Adjective. (colloquial) Of or pertaining to Peckham, a place in Southwark London. ¹
4. Adjective. (colloquial) Native to Peckham. ¹
¹ Source: wiktionary.com
Definition of Peckish
1. irritable [adj] - See also: irritable
Lexicographical Neighbors of Peckish
Literary usage of Peckish
Below you will find example usage of this term as found in modern and/or classical literature:
1. Slang and Its Analogues Past and Present: A Dictionary, Historical and by John Stephen Farmer, William Ernest Henley (1902)
"Seeing these nobs grubbing away has made me peckish too. 1860. ... I feel a bit
peckish, don't you ? We might have a bit of lunch here. ..."
2. The Slang Dictionary: Etymological, Historical, and Anecdotal by John Camden Hotten (1874)
"Pek" was meat, —we still say " peckish," when hungry. " peckish" is though more
likely to be derived from the action of birds when eating, as all slang has ..."
3. Bentley's Miscellany by Charles Dickens, William Harrison Ainsworth, Albert Smith (1845)
"How terribly peckish I am, to be sure ! Ah ! there 's Garten's. There are the lions,
... I 'm so peckish—so hungry, I mean." " Hungry, are you ? ..."
Other Resources:
