kiewietjie, noun

/ˈkɪvɪki//ˈkiviki//ˈkɪvɪci/
Forms:
kee-vekie, kevekyShow more Also kee-vekie, keveky, kevitje, kewiche, kievietje, kiewitje, kivietje, kivike, kiviky, kivitje, kiwikie.
Origin:
AfrikaansShow more Afrikaans, kiewiet see kiewiet + diminutive suffix -ie.
1. kiewiet. Also attributive.
1835 T.H. Bowker Journal. 16 Oct.Shot kevekys.
1891 E. Glanville Fossicker 142Clouds of long-legged, white-winged Kee-vekies, the pest of the hunter.
a1885 T.H. Bowker in M.E. Barber Erythrina Tree [Ms. insertion]The stars too are twinkling above in the sky And the night owl is screaming and kivikys cry.
1896 H.A. Bryden Tales of S. Afr. 121The cry of one or two night birds may be heard — the dikkop and the kiewitje plovers.
1911 D.B. Hook ’Tis but Yesterday 57Little birds called ‘kevitjes’. [Source Note: The lively little plover-like singer familiar to many travellers.]
1931 G. Beet Grand Old Days 15Goodly gatherings of the gentle red-legged plover, or ‘kiewietje’ which even yet pays friendly visits to our farmers.
[1937 M. Alston Wanderings 61Crowned lapwings...The Dutch name for this bird is ‘kiewetje’ from the cry.]
1939 Outspan 22 Sept. 55The kiewietjie is..one of the easiest birds to photograph at the nest.
1940 Baumann & Bright Lost Republic 234The kivike..flew about just after the sun had set, and screamed as if he were being hurt.
1959 J. Meiring Candle in Wind 46The high, shrill, piercing cry of the kiewietjie in the veld as it ran on its long thin legs through the grass.
1974 E. Prov. Herald 7 Nov. 5The wide-eyed appearance of this ‘kiewietjie’ yesterday, nesting on a lawn.., is understandable after it had to sit through the surrounding Guy Fawkes celebrations this week.
1982 E. Prov. Herald 9 Oct. 1Golfers..keep a sharp lookout for the flags that dot the fairways, marking the nests of the club’s friendly kiewietjies.
1993 A.C. Brown in Afr. Wildlife Vol.47 No.2, 83One of the kiewietjies had built a nest just inside the school fence, where we could clearly see it from the pavement.
2. figurative. colloquial. In the phrase kiewietjie beentjies [Afrikaans, been leg + dimunitive suffix -ie + plural -s], very thin legs.
1970 S. Sparks Informant, Fort Beaufort, Eastern CapeThat child has real ‘kiewietjie beentjies’ as she has such a poor appetite. (Very thin legs.)
kiewiet. Also attributive.
In the phrase kiewietjie beentjies, very thin legs.
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18351993

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idiomatic
figurative or allusive
kiewiet, nounn.kif, adjectiveadj.
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