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darkie

darkie

2 9.9
A rude and very offensive word for a Black person
  • noun
  • Slur
: [término racista para persona negra]
  • "The use of the word darkie is not only outdated but also deeply hurtful, reflecting historical prejudice."
  • say "darkie"

Examples

  • What's the matter with that darkie?

  • Most of the people are not against the "massive debt" you mention; they are just against having a darkie in the White House.

    Blog text (2)
  • Look, this darkie is obviously being used in an attempt to derail my campaign.

  • "Nobody'll notice one more darkie," he said.

    Fiction book (1995)
  • Walter makes no excuses for himself; he comes right out with it, saying nothing would have happened if he and his cowboys had not tormented that poor old darkie.

    Fiction book (1990)
  • "Get out of here, you darkie!" shouted the man, revealing the offensive slur's underlying racism.

  • "In the past, many derogatory terms like darkie were used to demean Black individuals and perpetuate racial stereotypes."

Synonyms

Black
vsdarkie
526 3.5

A person with dark skin, often of African ancestry

is an extremely offensive and dated slur rather than a respectful identity term
Black person
vsdarkie
395 1.2

A person with dark skin whose family comes from Africa

is an extremely offensive and dated slur used to insult people with dark skin

Surface Forms

darkie singular
darkies plural

Morphology

darkie = dark (opaque) = dark + ie

Although formed from 'dark' + the diminutive/pejorative suffix '-ie', the meaning is an offensive racial slur that is not inferable or appropriate from the base word by typical learners.

Etymology

Darkie comes from the English word dark plus the ending -ie, which makes a word sound 'small' or 'friendly', and it was used to name people with dark skin. That's why darkie is now an extremely offensive slur, a hurtful name for Black people, and should never be used.