Origin of piker
origin, originally , probably one from Pike County, Missouri, then applied to Missourians generally: reason for later uses obscureSlang a person who does things in a petty or niggardly way; esp. one who gambles or speculates in an overly cautious waypiker
pik·er
noun
The definition of a piker is slang for a very frugal or extremely cautious person.
An example of a piker is a person who will only buy the cheapest of everything.
YourDictionary definition and usage example. Copyright © 2018 by LoveToKnow Corp
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"piker." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 24 June 2019. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/PIKER>.
APA Style
piker. (n.d.). Retrieved June 24th, 2019, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/PIKER
piker
Webster's New World College Dictionary, Fifth Edition Copyright © 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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Cite this page
MLA Style
"piker." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 24 June 2019. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/PIKER>.
APA Style
piker. (n.d.). Retrieved June 24th, 2019, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/PIKER
piker
noun
Slang- A cautious gambler.
- A person regarded as petty or stingy.
Origin of piker
Possibly from Piker a poor migrant to California after Pike County in eastern MissouriTHE AMERICAN HERITAGE® DICTIONARY OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE, FIFTH EDITION by the Editors of the American Heritage Dictionaries. Copyright © 2016, 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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Cite this page
MLA Style
"piker." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 24 June 2019. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/PIKER>.
APA Style
piker. (n.d.). Retrieved June 24th, 2019, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/PIKER
Noun
(plural pikers)
- (military, historical) A soldier armed with a pike, a pikeman.
- One who bets or gambles only with small amounts of money.
- A stingy person; a cheapskate.
- An amateur.
- (Australia, New Zealand, slang) One who refuses to go out with friends, or leaves a party early.
- Mate, don't be a piker! Come to Angie"²s birthday party tonight!
- (Australia, New Zealand, slang) One who pikes (quits or backs out of a promise).
- (US, dated) A male freshman at Cornell University.
Usage notes
It has been linked etymologically to the word pikey as well as to Pike County in eastern Missouri . In the latter instance the term originally denoted poor immigrants to California.
Origin
From pike +"Ž -er.
English Wiktionary. Available under CC-BY-SA license.
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Cite this page
MLA Style
"piker." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 24 June 2019. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/PIKER>.
APA Style
piker. (n.d.). Retrieved June 24th, 2019, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/PIKER
