Lezzie

Part of speech: noun, adjective

Definitions

1. A woman who is sexually or romantically attracted to women
2. A female person whose sexual orientation is toward other women
3. A woman whose romantic and sexual interests are directed toward women

Etymology: "Lezzie" is an alteration of "lesbian" with the diminutive or familiar suffix "-ie" added on the end. The suffix turns the formal adjective-turned-noun into a casual, clipped form, much as "hankie" or "cutie" work in English. The same pattern gives "Aussie" from "Australian" and "brekkie" from "breakfast", so "lezzie" sits in a large family of informal words that trim and then add "-ie" or "-y". The result is a word whose meaning is identical to its source but whose tone is very different. Because it is shortened and familiar, it is often used informally, and in some contexts it has been used dismissively or as a slur, so its effect depends heavily on who is speaking and how. The base word "lesbian" is the one that carries the neutral, standard sense, and "lezzie" is best understood as a casual variant of it.