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yankee

verb, noun — 12 senses

Yankee

verbalso spelled Yankee

/ˈjæŋ.ki/ · /ˈjeɪ̯ŋ.ki/

Etymology First attested in 1765, when it was described as "a name of derision … given by the Southern people on the Continent to those of New England". Various suggestions have been made as to its origin: that it derives from a Cherokee word meaning "slave" or "coward" and was applied to the New Englanders by the Virginians because the former refused to aid the latter in a war against the Cherokees; that it derives from Yengees, an Indian corruption of English; and that it derives from Janke, a pet form of the common Dutch forename Jan. The OED regards the last of these as "perhaps the most plausible".

1

Canada, US, Dated, Offensive, Slang, Sometimes to cheat, trick or swindle somebody; to misrepresent something

  • Kentuckians reportedly regarded a Yankee “as a sort of Jesuit” because of his religious zeal, while in Illinois the term yankeed was synonymous with cheated.2011, Colin Woodard, chapter 17, in American nations, New York: Penguin, →ISBN:

yankee

noun
1

Nautical, Transport A headsail resembling a genoa or a jib but with a high-cut clew, normally used together with a staysail. A sailing boat is typically equipped with three yankee sails of different sizes, number one being the largest.

2

Alternative letter-case form of Yankee from the NATO/ICAO Phonetic Alphabet.

International standards

3

Obsolete Obsolete form of Yankee (“either a US Northerner or any US American”).

  • As the coach was by law limited to a slow pace on the bridge, we had leisure to read the wayward fancies of our predecessors inscribed in chalk, and many a true yankee name did we recognize;—the bridge is a kind of traveller’s register.1823 May 16, “Tour to the Western States”, in New-England Galaxy, volume VI, number 292, front page, column 2:
  • The duchess humoured their peculiarities, praised their country, extolled their taste, and joined in their laughter, so that, in a short time, in a short time, a kind of infectious mirth and pride in their bargains took possession of the place, and every one bought something, holding out their purchases to view, and praising them in the words and phraseology of the young yankees, who, finding their own importance, were not slow to avail themselves of it, and walked from stand to stand, wherever beauty attracted them, making comments which had more truth than politeness, but never failed to be well received by those whom they distinguished.1842, [anonymous collaborator of Letitia Elizabeth Landon], chapter XXXIX, in Lady Anne Granard; or, Keeping up Appearances. […], volume II, London: Henry Colburn, […], →OCLC, page 194:
4 more examples
  • Meanwhile, rumour had been tramping about with her crescit eundô; and, long before the Faculty received our Scytala, they had heard her cry—“The Board has told Major Thorntree, the Faculty shall be tried and turned right out, and shall be sued for damages done the school and the State, and—Woodville, by their unconstitutional, high-hand, big-buggish, aristocratic yankee notions!!”1843, Baynard Rush Hall, The New Purchase: Or, Seven and a Half Years in the Far West, page 183:
  • It seems as if within the past few years, our yankee friends were turning their attention in earnest to the matter of endeavoring to lighten the heavier parts of female labor.1850 October 26, “More Help for the Girls”, in John H. Pearsol, editor, The Saturday Express. […], volume 8, number 12, Lancaster, Pa.: John H. Pearsol, →OCLC, page [2], column 2:
  • The quidnunctious yankee woman is posted in gynecology. She never breeds.1887, Edward Bond Foote, The Radical Remedy in Social Science - Borning Better Babies through Regulating Reproduction by Controlling Conception - An Earnest Essay on Pressing Problems, Murray Hill Publishing Company, page 130
  • And what was it only one of the smutty yankee pictures Terry borrows off of Corny Kelleher. Secrets for enlarging your private parts.1922 February, James Joyce, “[Episode 12: Cyclops]”, in Ulysses, Paris: Shakespeare and Company, […], →OCLC, part II [Odyssey], page 310:

Yankee

noun

Etymology First attested in 1765, when it was described as "a name of derision … given by the Southern people on the Continent to those of New England". Various suggestions have been made as to its origin: that it derives from a Cherokee word meaning "slave" or "coward" and was applied to the New Englanders by the Virginians because the former refused to aid the latter in a war against the Cherokees; that it derives from Yengees, an Indian corruption of English; and that it derives from Janke, a pet form of the common Dutch forename Jan. The OED regards the last of these as "perhaps the most plausible".

8 senses
  1. 1A native or inhabitant of the northern United States.
  2. 2A native or inhabitant of New England.
  3. 3An anglo, someone without French ancestry; a native or…
  4. 4A native or inhabitant of the United States in general.
  5. 5Any individual associated with the Union; that is, the…
  6. 6A player for the New York Yankees.
  7. 7A large triangular headsail used in light or moderate…
  8. 8A wager on four selections, consisting of 11 separate…

› A native or inhabitant of some part of the…

1

Southern US A native or inhabitant of the northern United States.

  • […]so that I couldn't help telling her, sir, that in our country, leastways in Virginia (they say the Yankees are very pert), young people don't speak of their elders so.1857–1859, W[illiam] M[akepeace] Thackeray, chapter XXXIV, in The Virginians. A Tale of the Last Century, volume (please specify |volume=I or II), London: Bradbury & Evans, […], published 1858–1859, →OCLC:
  • “So, he is the father of Emmie Slattery’s baby,” thought Scarlett. “Oh, well. What else can you expect from a Yankee man and a white-trash girl?”1936 June 30, Margaret Mitchell, Gone with the Wind, New York, N.Y.: The Macmillan Company, published June 1944, →OCLC, part I, page 71:

› A native or inhabitant of some part of the… › A native or inhabitant of the northern United States.

2

Northern US, Southern US A native or inhabitant of New England.

› A native or inhabitant of some part of the…

3

French, Louisiana An anglo, someone without French ancestry; a native or inhabitant of the rest of the United States.

4

Commonwealth, Derogatory, Sometimes A native or inhabitant of the United States in general.

  • ...in a short time, a kind of infectious mirth and pride in their bargains took possession of the place, and every one bought something, holding out their purchases to view, and praising them in the words and phraseology of the young yankees, who, finding their own importance, were not slow to avail themselves of it,...1842, [anonymous collaborator of Letitia Elizabeth Landon], chapter XXXIX, in Lady Anne Granard; or, Keeping up Appearances. […], volume II, London: Henry Colburn, […], →OCLC, page 194:
5

Southern US, Derogatory, Historical, Often Any individual associated with the Union; that is, the United States federal government, during the American Civil War.

6

Ball games, Baseball, Games, Hobbies, Lifestyle, Sports A player for the New York Yankees.

7

Nautical, Transport A large triangular headsail used in light or moderate winds and set on the fore topmast stay. Unlike a genoa it does not fill the whole fore triangle, but is set in combination with the working staysail.

8

Gambling, Games A wager on four selections, consisting of 11 separate bets: six doubles, four trebles and a fourfold accumulator.

  • Betting is complicated with win bets, place bets, each-way bets and complex bets such as doubles, trebles, Yankees and the like.1980 March 20, New Scientist, volume 85, number 1199:
Derived terms
damn Yankee, seppo, septic tank, Yank, Yankee bean, Yankee cheese, Yankee dime, Yankeedom, Yankee-Doodle, Yankee go home, Yankee ingenuity, Yankeeism, Yankees Creek, Yankee screwdriver, Yankee swap, yanqui

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