matilda meaning: definition, etymology and quotations

matilda

nounalso spelled Matilda

/məˈtɪldə/

Etymology Unknown.

Australia A bundle of possessions, often tied up in a sack; a swag.

1906, A. B. Paterson, On The Road to Gundagai, The Old Bush Songs, Gutenberg eBook #10493, In a week the spree was over and the cheque was all knocked down, / So we shouldered our “Matildas,” and we turned our backs on town, / And the girls they stood a nobbler as we sadly said “Good bye,” / And we tramped from Lazy Harry’s, not five miles from Gundagai;
When a hobo roams through the outback with a matilda on his back, he is said to be “waltzing matilda.”1999, Milton Finkelstein, Global geography:

Derived terms: waltz Matilda

Matilda

noun

Etymology From Middle English Matilda, from Old French Mathilde, from Old High German Mahthilt, Mehthilt, from Proto-West Germanic *Mahtihild, from Proto-Germanic *Mahtihildiz; compare German Mechthild, Old English Mæþhild (“Matilda”).

Government, Military, Politics, War UK, Historical Either of two British infantry tanks in use during World War II, the Infantry Tank Mark I or Infantry Tank Mark II.

Australia, Historical A swag or bluey carried by a swagman or swagwoman.

Oh there once was a swagman camped in the billabong, Under the shade of a coolibah tree, And he sang as he looked at the old billy boiling, 'Who'll come a'waltzing Matilda, with me.'1895, “Waltzing Matilda”, Banjo Paterson (lyrics):

Synonyms: Matilda I, Matilda II

Entry derived from the Wiktionary, under licence CC BY-SA 4.0 — authors: page histories for matilda and Matilda.