Origin: 1940–45; earlier in form bulldike (with a var. bulldagger); of obscure orig.; claimed to be a shortening of morphodyke (var. of morphodite, a reshaping of hermaphrodite), though morphodyke is more likely a b. morphodite and a pre-existing dyke; other hypothesized connections, such as with diked out or dike “ditch,” are dubious on semantic grounds
n. a lesbian; a bulldiker.(Rude and derogatory.) : Who's the dike in the cowboy boots?
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition. Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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Word Origin & History
dyke
1931, Amer.Eng., probably shortening of morphadike, dialectal garbling of hermaphrodite, but bulldyker "engage in lesbian activities" is attested from 1921, and a source from 1896 lists dyke as slang for "the vulva."