Dictionary

lickety en · ADV

Pronunciation

• /ˈlɪkɪti/

Etymology

Somewhat disputed. The Oxford English Dictionary suggests either the verb or noun lick “stroke with the tongue”, with -ety, a suffix used to extend monosyllabic words. Merriam-Webster supports OED, deriving lickety-split from the same senses of lick. Harper's Online Etymology Dictionary, in contrast, suggests it is a variant of the noun lick “sprint; rate of speed”. Some writers suggest that lickety-split may be onomatopoeic – compare clickety, clicketty-clack – but they note this as personal opinion. The word is attested, with variable spelling, from the 19th century; see quotations below and at Citations:lickety.

Meanings

1. (US, informal, qualifier:usually compounded with a noun) At full speed, fast.
   • Away they started, “lickety-click,” and arrived at the winning-post within touching distance of each other. 1843, John S. Robb, Streaks of Squatter of Life, and Far-west Scenes, page 116:
   • Lickity, lickity, switch, we came to the ford, and Chiquita / Buckled right down to her work 1886, Bret Harte, “Chiquita”, in Abraham Firth, editor, Voices for the Speechless, page 95:
   • lickety-split
   • lickety-cut

Forms