Cutty

Part of speech: adjective

Pronunciation: /ˈkʌti/

Definitions

1. Having a shorter or smaller build or height than usual ; a small, typically inexpensive clay pipe used for smoking tobacco in Scotland ; used to insultingly refer to a young female, often implying disrespect or contempt
2. Describing a person or thing that is notably short in size or stature ; a traditional Scottish small pipe made from clay for smoking ; a derogatory term applied to a girl or young woman to indicate scorn
3. Characterizing something or someone as unusually short or compact ; a diminutive clay pipe commonly found in Scottish culture ; slang expression for a young woman used with a negative or mocking tone

Etymology: The adjective "cutty" is about as plain as English word-building gets: it is "cut" with the suffix "-y" added, and the suffix turns the verb's sense of cutting off or shortening into a description of something that has been cut short or made compact. Its ancestry runs back through Middle English "cutten" to the Old English verb "cut" with its roots in the Germanic languages, but the suffix that does the work is the more ordinary piece of the puzzle. The Scottish clay pipe and the mocking slang for a young woman are both later extensions of that core sense of being short or stubby. A clay pipe cut short in the bowl and stem earned the name, and the slang uses are attached to Scots and northern English speech, where the adjective long outlived its wider currency.

Synonyms: short, curt

Antonyms: long, lengthy