cheeky
English edit
Etymology edit
Pronunciation edit
Adjective edit
cheeky (comparative cheekier, superlative cheekiest)
- (informal) Impudent; impertinent; impertinently bold, often in a way that is regarded as endearing or amusing.
- 1899 February, Rudyard Kipling, “The Impressionists”, in Stalky & Co., London: Macmillan & Co., published 1899, →OCLC, page 112:
- 'Shut up,' said Harrison. 'You chaps always behave as if you were jawin' us when we come to jaw you.' / 'You're a lot too cheeky,' said Craye.
- 1909, P. G. Wodehouse, chapter 7, in The Swoop! or How Clarence Saved England:
- The Young Turks, as might have been expected, wrote in their customary flippant, cheeky style.
- (informal, of swimwear, underwear, etc.) Tending to expose the cheeks of the buttocks.
- 1984, Hugh Lunn, Queenslanders, page 159:
- Barry said he introduced the cheeky bikini to the Coast three years ago: "I took a theatrical garment worn for as long as there have been strippers and showgirls — the G-string — and put it on the beach and gave it a name and we sold a heap."
- 2002, Elle, volume 17:
- Joyce Azria oversees a staff of twelve, manages a multimillion-dollar budget, and, in her first year as director of BCBG swimwear, designed cheeky bikinis and deep-V maillots that became top sellers at Bloomingdale's.
- (Australian Aboriginal) Poisonous (of animals such as snakes), dangerous, cunning, violent, potent.
- 1994, Victoria Katherine Burbank, Fighting Women: Anger and Aggression in Aboriginal Australia, Univ of California Press, →ISBN, page 57:
- A death adder is cheeky, a tree snake quiet. Wasps are only cheeky if you hold them in your hand.
- 1995, Richard Shine, Australian Snakes: A Natural History, Cornell University Press, →ISBN, page 176:
- There is no doubt that many have been killed by large elapids, and that Aborigines treat such 'cheeky' snakes (and colubrids of similar appearance) with great respect.
- (informal, UK, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand) Indulged in.
- 2009, Amy Huberman, Hello, Heartbreak, Penguin UK, →ISBN:
- Although sometimes I'd award myself a cheeky McDonald's hangover treat if I did well.
- 2010, Richard Herring, How Not to Grow Up: A Coming of Age Memoir. Sort of., Random House, →ISBN, page 285:
- It was a massive struggle to resist the lure of a cheeky beer, but I held firm.
- 2011, John Donoghue, Police, Crime & 999, Troubador Publishing Ltd, →ISBN, page 7:
- It transpired that Mrs Egg had been cooking dinner when she discovered Mr Singlet making himself a sandwich. I don't know about you but it does seem a little bit naught after she's gone to all that effort. Naughty yes but hardly a crime and certainly not enough to warrant a 999 call. Yet that's what she had done. That's why we had left our own dinner, charged through rush hour traffic, disrupted commuters on their way home – all for a cheeky sandwich.
- 2011, James Goss, Torchwood: First Born, Random House, →ISBN, page 20:
- The great thing was it gave him a little bit of freedom and me the chance to sneak a cheeky nap.
Synonyms edit
Derived terms edit
Translations edit
impudent; impertinent