paddy
paddy Lexical Profile
paddy Game Scores & Validity
• noun
A flooded, leveled parcel of arable land used for cultivating semiaquatic crops, most notably rice, widely established across East, South, and Southeast Asia.
"Farmers worked throughout the morning transplanting young green shoots into the flooded paddy."
Rice that is still growing or remains in its natural, unhusked state after harvesting and before milling.
"The harvested paddy was spread out on woven mats in the courtyard to dry in the sun before milling."
British A sudden, brief outburst of anger, petulance, or bad temper (informal).
"The toddler threw a right paddy when told it was time to leave the playground."
• Rhymes for paddy
Word Origin & Etymology
In its agricultural sense, the word was borrowed in the early 17th century from Malay 'padi', referring to rice in the straw or hull. The informal British sense of a fit of temper derives from the ethnic nickname 'Paddy' (an Irish diminutive of Patrick).