What does "mickey" mean?
The smallest distance that a computer mouse can move a cursor on a screen, which is used to measure the device's resolution or sensitivity.
Mickey
/ˈmɪki/ adj, name, noun, verb, slang
adj, name, noun, verb, slang ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: The smallest distance that a computer mouse can move a cursor on a screen, which is used to measure the device's resolution or sensitivity.
- Grammar: mickey is listed as adj, name, noun, verb, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: mick, aperitif, chaser, cocktail.
- Useful contrasts: clean beverage, unadulterated beverage, unpoisoned drink.
- Usage evidence: Mickey Conners made mincemeat of his opponent in the ring.
How to use "mickey"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "mickey" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "mickey" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "mickey" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "mickey" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "mickey" is acting as adj, name, noun, verb, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "mick" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "mickey", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 The smallest distance that a computer mouse can move a cursor on a screen, which is used to measure the device's resolution or sensitivity.
"The Mmove_ratio method controls the ratio of physical mouse movement to screen cursor movement with the x- and y-axis arguments (xsize and ysize) expressed as the number of mickeys (units of mouse motion) required to cover eight pixels on the screen. […] [T]he appropriate values are dependent on the number of mickeys per inch reported by the physical mouse; values which may be 100, 200, or 320 mickeys per inch depending on the mouse hardware. Default values are 8 mickeys/8 pixels horizontal and 16 mickeys/8 pixels vertical."
- 2 A Mickey Mouse cartoon. informal, rare
- 3 (ethnic slur) offensive term for a person of Irish descent wordnet
- 4 The noisy miner (Manorina melanocephala), a honeyeater endemic to eastern and southeastern Australia. Australia, informal
- 5 Synonym of Mick.; A Roman Catholic person. derogatory, offensive, slang
Show 12 more definitions
- 6 A young bull, especially one which is unbranded and running wild; a bullock. Australia, slang
"The cattle slayers had gone their way, with their smoking rifles and the mob of "mickies" they intended, somewhere in the fastnesses of the ranges, to brand and make legally, as far as the letter of the law went, their own."
- 7 Synonym of Mick.; An Irishman. US, derogatory, offensive, slang
"National identity and ethnic origin mapped gang territory: ‘Little Italy’; ‘Little Sicily’; ‘Polish colony’; […] ‘Mickies’ (Irish). Each possessed demarcated districts within which gangs adopted neighbourhood names and tags […]"
- 8 The vulva. Australia, Ireland, New-Zealand, rare, slang
"Can't blame her for it, 'cause her mickey was probably throbbin' for it."
- 9 Short for Mickey Finn (“an alcoholic or non-alcoholic drink deliberately doctored with a drug intended to quickly render the drinker unconscious”). abbreviation, alt-of, slang
- 10 A small bottle of liquor, such as whiskey, usually holding 375 millilitres (13.2 imperial fluid ounces; 12.7 U.S. fluid ounces), typically shaped to fit in one's pocket. Canada, informal
"While you’re at the liquor store, get a mickey of rye."
- 11 A type of bombsight assisted by radar. historical, slang
- 12 The penis. Ireland, slang
"He fell off the bike and injured his mickey."
- 13 Short for Mickey Bliss (“an act of urinating; a piss”). Cockney, UK, abbreviation, alt-of, slang
- 14 In take the mickey: a person's (false) pride, which is criticized through disparagement or ridicule; piss. UK, informal
"'Higgsy,' said the sergeant, 'they think I'm taking the mickey. Tell 'em.'"
- 15 Alternative letter-case form of Mickey (“an Irishman”). US, alt-of, derogatory, offensive, slang
"There was an old micky named Cassidy / who was famed for impromptu mendacity. / When asked did he lie / he replied: to reply / would be to impugn his veracity."
- 16 A potato or sweet potato; specifically, one roasted over a fire outdoors. New-York-City, US, dated, slang
"We roasted mickeys over a fire with two-foot sticks."
- 17 Alternative letter-case form of Mickey (“a Mickey Finn: an alcoholic drink deliberately doctored with a drug intended to quickly render the drinker unconscious”). US, alt-of, slang
"He was slipped a mickey."
Verb
- 1 Sometimes followed by up: short for mickey-finn (“to drug (someone) with a Mickey Finn (“an alcoholic or non-alcoholic drink deliberately doctored with a drug intended to quickly render the drinker unconscious”); to secretly put a drug into (someone's drink) to render them unconscious”). transitive
"Sam said he hadn't mickeyed me. That meant that he had either prepared a mickey at someone else's order, without knowing for whom it was intended, or he had seen someone else do the concocting."
Adjective
- 1 Short for Mickey Mouse (“excellent, grouse”). Australia, abbreviation, alt-of, informal
Proper Noun
- 1 A diminutive of the male given name Michael.
- 2 A diminutive of the female given names Michaela or Michelle.
Antonyms
clean beverageunadulterated beverageunpoisoned drink
Example
"Mickey Conners made mincemeat of his opponent in the ring."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "mickey"?
Common synonyms include: mick, aperitif, chaser, cocktail, dago, drink.
How do you use "mickey" in a sentence?
Mickey Conners made mincemeat of his opponent in the ring.
How do you pronounce "mickey"?
Pronounced /ˈmɪki/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
Alternative letter-case form of Mickey (noun), from Mickey (“diminutive of the male given name Michael”, proper noun), from Mick (“diminutive of the male given name Michael”) + -ey (a variant of -y (diminutive suffix)). Noun sense 1 (“smallest distance that a computer mouse can move a cursor”) refers to the cartoon character Mickey Mouse. Noun sense 5 (“penis”), noun sense 7.1 (“Irishman”), and noun sense 7.2 (“potato; sweet potato”) refer to the fact that since the 17th century Michael and its diminutives Mick, Mickey, and Mike have been one of the most common names in Ireland, and to the prevalence of potatoes in the Irish diet; compare murphy (“potato”). Noun sense 6.2 (“in take the mickey: (false) pride”) possibly refers to the use of Mickey Bliss as rhyming slang for piss (“act of urinating”); compare take the piss and noun sense 6.1. The adjective is short for Mickey Mouse, which is rhyming slang for grouse (“(Australia, New Zealand, slang) excellent”). The verb is short for mickey-finn, from Mickey Finn; compare noun sense 7.3.
Etymology 2
The proper noun is derived from Mick (“diminutive of the male given name Michael”) + -ey (a variant of -y (diminutive suffix)). The common noun is derived from the proper noun. Noun sense 1 (“Mickey Mouse cartoon”) and noun sense 3.2 (“type of bombsight assisted by radar”) are short forms of Mickey Mouse. Noun sense 2 (“synonym of Mick”) refers to the fact that since the 17th century Michael and its diminutives Mick, Mickey, and Mike have been one of the most common names in Ireland, and that many Irish people are Roman Catholic. Noun sense 3.1 is a short form of Mickey Finn.