tyke
noun/taɪk/
Etymology From Middle English tike, tyke, from Old Norse tík (“female dog”), from Proto-Germanic *tīkō. Compare Icelandic tík, Faroese tík, and Swedish tik, all meaning “bitch, female dog”.
1
Dialectal A mongrel dog.
- It was the day of warlocks and apparitions, now happily driven out by the zeal of the General Assembly. Witches pursued their wanchancy calling, bairns were spirited away, young lassies selled their souls to the Evil One, and the Accuser of the Brethren, in the shape of a black tyke, was seen about cottage doors in the gloaming.1902, John Buchan, The Outgoing of the Tide:
2
Colloquial A small child, especially a cheeky or mischievous one.
- Manipulative little tyke I was.1983, Bill Oddie, Gone Birding, London: Methuen, page 146:
3
Canada, Colloquial Designating an initiation level of sports competition for young children.
- Why, the inquiry thing, the yellow-dog thing—you wouldn’t think a mangy, native tyke would be allowed to trip up people in the verandah of a magistrate’s court, would you?1900, Joseph Conrad, chapter 5, in Lord Jim:
- Synonyms
- mongrel, mutt, ankle-biter, nipper, tot
- Derived terms
- dyke tyke, gay tyke boy, tykish
- Related terms
- Tyke