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Webster 1913 Edition


Pickaninny

Pick′a-ninˊny

(pĭk′ȧ-nĭnˊny̆)
,
Noun.
;
pl.
Pickaninnies
(pĭk′ȧ-nĭnˊnĭz)
.
[Cf. Sp.
pequeño
little, young.]
A small child; especially, a negro or mulatto infant. Now (2001) used primarily in the latter sense, and in that sense often considered derogatory.
[U.S. & West Indies]

Definition 2024


pickaninny

pickaninny

English

Alternative forms

Adjective

pickaninny (not comparable)

  1. (Southern US, Australia) Little, small.
    • For usage examples of this term, see Citations:pickaninny.

Noun

pickaninny (plural pickaninnies)

  1. (obsolete, derogatory) A black child.

Translations

Derived terms

Descendants

References

  1. pickaninny” in Douglas Harper, Online Etymology Dictionary (2001).
  2. Encyclopædia Britannica, 1911.
  • Ernest Giles, Australia Twice Traversed (1889) (confirms that the adjective meaning "little" is used in Australia)