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barney

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Barney¹

  • /ˈbɑɹni/ US
  • /ˈbɑːni/ UK

Rhymes with -ɑː(ɹ)ni

Where it comes from

From either the Old English personal name Bera (genitive singular Beran) or from Old English beren (“growing with barley”) + īeġ (“island”).

proper noun Barneys

  1. countable, uncountable A male given name transferred from the surname.
  2. countable, uncountable A diminutive of the male given names Barnabas, Barnaby, Bernard, and Barnett.
  3. countable, uncountable A male given name from Old English.
  4. countable, uncountable A surname transferred from the given name.
  5. countable, uncountable A surname from Old English [in turn from placenames] from the place name Barney, Old English "barn/barley island".
  6. countable, uncountable A surname from Old English [in turn transferred from the given name].
  7. countable, uncountable A village in Fulmodeston parish, North Norfolk district, Norfolk, England (OS grid ref TF9932).
  8. countable, uncountable An unincorporated community in Faulkner County, Arkansas.
  9. countable, uncountable An unincorporated community in Brooks County, Georgia.
  10. countable, uncountable An unincorporated community in Madison County, Iowa.
  11. countable, uncountable A minor city in Richland County, North Dakota.

Barney²

  • /ˈbɑɹni/ US
  • /ˈbɑːni/ UK

Rhymes with -ɑː(ɹ)ni

Where it comes from

From the character Barney of the television show Barney and Friends.

noun Barneys

  1. A television character popular among children, especially one who is a vividly colored animal mascot. She's not joking [bitch] when she says she wants to be the Barney of drag!

barney³

  • /ˈbɑːni/ UK
  • /ˈbɑɹni/ US

Rhymes with -oɑː(ɹ)ni

Where it comes from

Etymology unknown. Often incorrectly thought to be Cockney rhyming slang from Barney Rubble (“trouble”, from the character Barney Rubble on The Flintstones), it actually dates back to the 19th century and its origin is unknown.

noun barneys

  1. UK, obsolete, slang A lark, a romp, some fun.
  2. UK, obsolete, slang A hoax, a humbug, something that is not genuine, a rigged or unfair sporting contest. "Just keep it i' thy mind," entreated the other, as a sort of parting remembrance, "ut I won thee i' fair powell—one toss an' no barney.[…]"
  3. obsolete A poor recitation.
  4. Australia, UK, slang A noisy argument. Gary and Mum went mental, and Gary phoned them up and had a right Barney with them.
  5. Australia, UK, slang A minor physical fight. I got stuck in the middle of a real barney between a couple of tough coppers and a handful of hairy protesters, and I didn't enjoy it one single bit.
  6. Boston, US, dialectal A student at Harvard University. There goes that fuckin' Barney right now, with his fuckin' "skiin' trip." We should'a kicked that dude's ass.
  7. Synonym of blimp (“a soundproof cover for a video camera”). You can create your own blimp or barney with anything that will deaden the camera noise, such as a changing bag, foam rubber, […]

    Similar: blimp

adjective more barney · most barney

  1. UK, obsolete, slang insane crazy, loony.

    Similar: quarrel, or see Thesaurus:dispute, scuffle, or see Thesaurus:fight, fisticuffs

Similar: row

verb barneys · barneying · barneyed

  1. obsolete To recite badly; to fail. What avails it to make a shine in Greek if the next hour one does a barney in calculus.
  2. Australia, UK To argue, to quarrel.

    Similar: bicker

Similar: row, have a barney, squabble, or see Thesaurus:squabble

barney⁴

  • /ˈbɑːni/ UK
  • /ˈbɑɹni/ US

Rhymes with -oɑː(ɹ)ni

Where it comes from

From the character Barney Fife on The Andy Griffith Show.

noun barneys

  1. US, derogatory, slang A police officer, usually one who is inferior or overzealous. She called the town Mayberry. She said Barney Fife was in charge.

    Similar: pig, or see Thesaurus:police officer, fed

Thesaurus

Closest in meaning: okay, fat, shrimp, barnet, worry, marshall, way, dog, kids, scrap, argument, quarrel, row, fight, brawl, melee

adjective

Similar: row

verb

Similar: row, have a barney, squabble, or see Thesaurus:squabble

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Cite this
MLA

"barney." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/barney. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

barney. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/barney

Chicago

"barney." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/barney.

BibTeX
@misc{barney_2026,
  title = {barney},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/barney},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}