beastie

American  

[bee-stee] / ˈbi sti /

noun

1. Chiefly Literary. a small animal, especially one toward which affection is felt.

2. Facetious. an insect; bug.

3. Canadian Slang (chiefly Alberta). construction worker.

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beastie British  

/ ˈbiːstɪ /

noun

1. a small animal

2. informal an insect

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Etymology

Origin of beastie

First recorded in 1775–85; beast + -ie

Explanation

A beastie is a small animal, especially a cute, wild one like a chipmunk, or a beloved, domesticated one like a pet. Someone might even refer to an insect, such as a ladybug or a cricket, as a beastie. As you might've guessed, beastie comes from beast, another word for "animal." The -ie added to the end is a diminutive suffix — it's used to indicate something or someone small, cute, or dear. You see it at the end of kiddie, for example. It often has the form -y, as in froggy for a little frog, and it's often attached to a person's name, as in Jeanie or Billy. There it expresses affection even if the person is not small — or cute.

Example Sentences

"He was a well known beastie in the streets of the West End of Edinburgh," he added.

From BBC • Feb. 27, 2025

We've officially entered "beastie" territory, and with "Old Wounds" nearing us towards the halfway mark of "Yellowjackets" Season 2 . . . the hunt is on.

From Salon • Apr. 14, 2023

Joel’s paternal fondness for Ellie, it becomes clear, scares him more than any undead beastie.

From New York Times • Jan. 12, 2023

In 1998, she found it did, in fact, slow, by about one-hundredth of 1 second—proof that Duncan and Thompson’s theoretical beastie existed in the wild.

From Science Magazine • Apr. 8, 2021

When he found there was no way to escape and no place to hide, he sat quaking with indignation, a wee, sleekit, cow’rin, tim’rous beastie, just as the poem said.

From "Ralph S. Mouse" by Beverly Cleary

Related Words

• animal
• creature
• wild animal