arsey

adjective

ars·​ey ˈär-sē 

1

Australian slang : lucky

I just cannot believe Parramatta won and we lost. We were a 10-point better side, they scored two arsey tries and we had two disallowed, which you could see for sure were OK.

—Geoff Johnson, quoted in Sydney (Australia) Morning Herald, 2 Sept. 1991

2

British slang : maliciously spiteful, bad-tempered, or unreasonable

When I told my girlfriend I was going for a drink with my flatmate, she got really arsey.

—James Petherbridge, Daily Mirror (London), 11 Aug. 2001

He was just asking you a question and you have to come over all arsey.

—Zadie Smith, White Teeth, 2000

Word History

Etymology

arse ass entry 4 + -y entry 1; sense 1 after tin-arse "lucky person," tin-arsed "lucky"

First Known Use

1953, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Love words?

You must — there are over 200,000 words in our free online dictionary, but you are looking for one that’s only in the Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary.

Start your free trial today and get unlimited access to America's largest dictionary, with:

• More than 250,000 words that aren't in our free dictionary
• Expanded definitions, etymologies, and usage notes
• Advanced search features
• Ad free!