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Words, grammatical forms and meanings linked to the ontology.

Popeye en · PROPN

Pronunciation

  • /ˈpʌpˌaɪ/ (New-England)
  • /ˈpɒpˌaɪ/
  • (Southern-England) audio

Etymology

Fictional character name coined in 1929 by cartoonist Elzie Crisler Segar, presumably pop + eye.

Meanings

  1. A tough cartoon sailor, full name Popeye the Sailor, characterized by bulging forearm muscles, a squinty eye, and an affinity for spinach.
    • Lenny gave him the Popeye squint as he rolled off to Frank, the other bodyguard on duty, who was standing on the other side of the stage behind the Epps camp. 1991, Anthony Bruno, Bad Luck, page 28:
    • Choosing and prepping yeast Working the dough: You don't need Popeye arms. 2011, Danna Korn, Connie Sarros, Gluten-Free Cooking For Dummies, page 122:
    • They seem equipped to drag the building between them right down Pennsylvania Avenue, but their progress is arrested by two heroes of Popeye musculature, government men putting a check rein on willful industry. 1967, Television Magazine, volume 24, number 11, page 27:
  2. A nickname for a person who has attributes of the cartoon character.
    • "Arf, arfl" It was a Popeye expression, which he used to express pleasure or enthusiasm. 2006, Alexander Fullerton, The Gatecrashers, page 60:
    • The UPU faction, headed by Popeye Jackson, drew considerable numbers of members away from the Prisoners' Union when it split off in 1973, primarily taking with it the union's more radical convicts. 1994, Eric Cummins, The Rise and Fall of California's Radical Prison Movement, page 216:
    • FAN FAVORITE: С Popeye Jones (1988-92) Befitting his nickname, Ronald "Popeye" Jones never came up short in the effort department. 2009, ESPN, ESPN College Basketball Encyclopedia, page 99:

Descendants

بباي (animated show, cartoon, anime) · popeye (short, strong man)

Translations (13)

mk Попај (tough cartoon sailor) · sv Skeppar-Kalle (tough cartoon sailor) · ar بَبَّاي (tough cartoon sailor) · tr Temel Reis (tough cartoon sailor) · mr पॉपाय (tough cartoon sailor) · nl Popeye (tough cartoon sailor) · pt Popeye (tough cartoon sailor) · mk Попај Морнарот (tough cartoon sailor) · sv Karl-Alfred (tough cartoon sailor) · ar بَابَاي (tough cartoon sailor) · it Braccio di Ferro (tough cartoon sailor) · he פופאי (tough cartoon sailor) · fi Kippari-Kalle (tough cartoon sailor)

wikidata: Q199796 · wikipedia: Popeye the Sailor Meets Ali Baba's Forty Thieves · wikipedia: E. C. Segar