Word Confusion: Caddie versus Caddy

Posted April 23, 2020 by kddidit in Author Resources, Self-Editing, Word Confusions, Writing

Revised as of
1 Nov 2022

This was my own confusion that came up when my mom talked about going golfing when the weather warms up. I was laughing when I asked her who her caddie would be, and then I got to thinking about caddie and caddy.

Now, I was thinking a caddy was strictly a box for organizing stuff, tea in particular. Instead caddy is also an alternative spelling for caddie . . . when it comes to talking about golf, anyway.

This pair of homophones shares a noun and verb definition, and caddy includes one more, about organization.

Word Confusions . . .

. . . started as my way of dealing with a professional frustration with properly spelled words that were out of context in manuscripts I was editing as well as books I was reviewing. It evolved into a sharing of information with y’all. I’m hoping you’ll share with us words that have been a bête noire for you from either end.

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Caddie	Caddy
Natalie Gulbis with Her Caddie, 2008 LPGA Championship, by Keith Allison is under the CC BY-SA 2.0 license, via Wikimedia Commons.	Chinese Tea Caddy with Spoon by Elizabeth Morley and Daderot is courtesy of the Indianapolis Museum of Art and is in the public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
Part of Grammar:
Noun; Verb, intransitive Plural for the noun: caddies Gerund: caddying Third person present verb: caddies Past tense or past participle: caddied Present participle: caddying Alternative spelling: caddy	Noun ¹, ²; Verb, intransitive ² Plural for the noun: caddies Gerund: caddying Third person present verb: caddies Past tense or past participle: caddied Present participle: caddying Alternative spelling: caddie [golf]
Noun: A person who carries a golfer’s clubs and provides other assistance during a match Verb, intransitive: Work as a caddie	Noun: A person who carries a golfer’s clubs and provides other assistance during a match ¹ [Usually with modifier] A small storage container, rack, or other device typically one with divisions for holding, organizing, or storing items ² [Chiefly British] A small box, can, or chest for holding tea leaves Verb, intransitive: Work as a caddie ²
Examples:
Noun: Can you find my caddie? Some of the caddies are smoking out back. “The good caddie carries much more than the weight of the golfer’s clubs in his back, that’s for sure,” he said. He would later become a caddie and an assistant at the club. Verb, intransitive: Yep, I used to caddie for Arnold Palmer. “Who are you caddying for today?” the taxi driver asked on the way to the course. For all the stories, I never once caddied in a group with Ben. I also caddied for my brother Manuel in a few pro events.	Noun: Can you find my caddy? “The good caddy carries much more than the weight of the golfer’s clubs in his back, that’s for sure,” he said. The English silverplated bottle caddy dates to the reign of William IV. Young faces peer from behind field-hockey rackets, plastic bins, unusual fly swatters, car cup holders and tool caddies. This hard drive caddy has freed up the top of my desk. I hated that bedspread caddy. It took up too much space in the bedroom. This tool caddy has so many cubbies that are perfectly sized. Mother, the tea caddy is empty. Verb, intransitive: Yep, I used to caddy for Arnold Palmer. “Who are you caddying for today?” the taxi driver asked on the way to the course. I can caddy for my brother Manuel next week.
History of the Word:
Originally Scots from the mid-17th century, from the French cadet. The original term denoted a gentleman who joined the army without a commission, intending to learn the profession and follow a military career, later coming to mean odd-job man. The current sense dates from the late 18th century.	See the history under “caddie”. Late 18th century, from the earlier catty, denoting a unit of weight of 1⅓ lb (0.61 kg), from the Malay kati.

Caddie

Caddy

Natalie Gulbis with Her Caddie, 2008 LPGA Championship, by Keith Allison is under the CC BY-SA 2.0 license, via Wikimedia Commons.

An open black Chinoiserie wooden box in with a knob-topped lid on either side of a round bowl of loose tea. A spoon rest is to the right of the bowl with a silver wide-mouth spoon

Chinese Tea Caddy with Spoon by Elizabeth Morley and Daderot is courtesy of the Indianapolis Museum of Art and is in the public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.

Part of Grammar:

Noun; Verb, intransitive

Plural for the noun: caddies
Gerund: caddying

Third person present verb: caddies
Past tense or past participle: caddied
Present participle: caddying

Alternative spelling: caddy

Noun ¹, ²; Verb, intransitive ²

Plural for the noun: caddies
Gerund: caddying

Third person present verb: caddies
Past tense or past participle: caddied
Present participle: caddying

Alternative spelling: caddie [golf]

Noun:
A person who carries a golfer’s clubs and provides other assistance during a match

Verb, intransitive:
Work as a caddie

Noun:
A person who carries a golfer’s clubs and provides other assistance during a match ¹

[Usually with modifier] A small storage container, rack, or other device typically one with divisions for holding, organizing, or storing items ²

[Chiefly British] A small box, can, or chest for holding tea leaves

Verb, intransitive:
Work as a caddie ²

Examples:

Noun:
Can you find my caddie?

Some of the caddies are smoking out back.

“The good caddie carries much more than the weight of the golfer’s clubs in his back, that’s for sure,” he said.

He would later become a caddie and an assistant at the club.

Verb, intransitive:
Yep, I used to caddie for Arnold Palmer.

“Who are you caddying for today?” the taxi driver asked on the way to the course.

For all the stories, I never once caddied in a group with Ben.

I also caddied for my brother Manuel in a few pro events.

Noun:
Can you find my caddy?

“The good caddy carries much more than the weight of the golfer’s clubs in his back, that’s for sure,” he said.

The English silverplated bottle caddy dates to the reign of William IV.

Young faces peer from behind field-hockey rackets, plastic bins, unusual fly swatters, car cup holders and tool caddies.

This hard drive caddy has freed up the top of my desk.

I hated that bedspread caddy. It took up too much space in the bedroom.

This tool caddy has so many cubbies that are perfectly sized.

Mother, the tea caddy is empty.

Verb, intransitive:
Yep, I used to caddy for Arnold Palmer.

“Who are you caddying for today?” the taxi driver asked on the way to the course.

I can caddy for my brother Manuel next week.

History of the Word:

Originally Scots from the mid-17th century, from the French cadet. The original term denoted a gentleman who joined the army without a commission, intending to learn the profession and follow a military career, later coming to mean odd-job man.

The current sense dates from the late 18th century.

See the history under “caddie”.
Late 18th century, from the earlier catty, denoting a unit of weight of 1⅓ lb (0.61 kg), from the Malay kati.

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C’mon, get it out of your system, bitch, whine, moan . . . which words are your pet peeves? Also, please note that I try to be as accurate as I can, but mistakes happen or I miss something. Email me if you find errors, so I can fix them . . . and we’ll all benefit!

Satisfy your curiosity about other Word Confusions on its homepage or more generally explore the index of self-editing posts. You may also want to explore Book Layout & Formatting Ideas, Formatting Tips, Grammar Explanations, Linguistics, Publishing Tips, the Properly Punctuated, Writing Ideas and Resources, and Working Your Website.

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