English
sonny
see also: Sonny
Pronunciation Noun

sonny (plural sonnies)

  1. a familiar form of address for a boy
  2. (colloquial, pejorative) form of address to a boy or man, to express contempt, warning etc.
    Synonyms: friend, buster, buddy, pal
Translations Translations
Sonny
Proper noun
  1. A nickname for a male child.
  2. A male given name.
    • 1938 Margery Allingham: The Fashion in Shrouds: page 136:
      'I was christened "Sonny"', the boy said with a protective formality which was clearly of some years' growth. ' It seems to have been all right then. Fashionable, you know. Now, of course, it's ghastly. Everyone calls me Sinclair, even Mother.'
    • 1990 Nadine Gordimer: My Son's Story: page 55:
      Sonny had had to change his mind about so many things, as his life changed, as the very meaning of his ridiculous name changed - first a hangover from sentimental parents, then a nickname to reassure the crowds at rallies that he was one of them, then an addendum to his full names in a prison dossier: 'also known as Sonny'. A common criminal with aliases.
  3. A female given name.
    • 2009 Del Halterman, Walk-Don't Run - The Story of the Ventures ISBN 0557040515 page 58:
      Sonia was hired and quickly persuaded everyone to call her “Sonny.” Josie recalls, “For some reason, she did not care for her first name, but I thought it was beautiful. I was surprised that she spelled her nickname 'Sonny' rather than 'Sunny', but I suppose it was because of the letter 'o' in Sonia.
    • 2016, Lisa Mondello, Her Only Protector ISBN 1460396987:
      Sonny suddenly recall a prayer her mother had said to her before she left for Colombia. They that hope in the Lord will [...] soar [...]. And then her mother had said, "Go soar, Sonny." Her mother had faith in her and she had to draw strength from that faith now. It was almost as if she'd known Sonny would need this verse at some point to keep her going.


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