Hicksville, n. orig. and chiefly U.S.
Brit. /ˈhɪksvɪl/, U.S. /ˈhɪksˌvɪl/, /ˈhɪksvəl/
Forms: α. 19– Hickville; β. 19– Hicksville; Also with lower-case initial.
[In α form <hick n.1 + -ville comb. form; in β form > n.1 + -ville comb. form.]
(The type of) an unsophisticated, rural, small town.
| 1921 E. O'Neill Straw i. ii. 46 Making a note that a tug boat towed two barges loaded with coal up the river, that Mrs. Perkins spent a weekend with relatives in Hickville. 1961 Reno (Nevada) Evening Gaz. 6 Mar. 6/6 You would be hard pressed today to find an audience that would merit the contemptuous ‘cornball, strictly from hicksville’ label that a vaudevillian in the 1920s might have used. 1985 Guardian (Nexis) 16 Apr. New Yorkers talk of neighborhood restaurants, bars and greengrocers with a pride that belies their efforts to escape from Hicksville, Tennessee, where everyone knew them. 1996 H. Coben Fade Away i. 9 Greg is just hanging out in French Lick or whatever hickville town he goes to in the off-season, fishing. 2004 Mirror (Nexis) 9 May 16 An out-of-the-way hicksville this ain't. |