spadger
spadger · spadgers
A sparrowA sparrow.
Meaning
2 senses(colloquial, dialectal)A sparrow.
(colloquial)A boy.
Origin
Originally British dialect (1850s), from spadge (fronted variant of northern dialect spag)Originally British dialect (1850s), from spadge (fronted variant of northern dialect spag) + -er. The northern dialect term spag is a derhoticised form of Scots spurg (“sparrow”), from spur (from Old Norse spǫrr (“sparrow”), suffixless cognate of Old English spearwa) + diminutive suffix -ock, with loss of vowel and voicing of -k to -g after r.
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