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ENGLISH · A WORD WITH POSSIBILITIES

thick.

Relatively great in extent from one surface to the opposite in its smallest solid dimension.

5 characters1 syllables approx.English language

Meaning & usage

adj/θɪk/Australia, General-American, Received-Pronunciation/θɘk/New-Zealand
  1. Relatively great in extent from one surface to the opposite in its smallest solid dimension.

  2. Measuring a certain number of units in this dimension.

    I want some planks that are two inches thick.
  3. Heavy in build; thickset.

    He had such a thick neck that he had to turn his body to look to the side.
  4. Densely crowded or packed.

    We walked through thick undergrowth.
  5. Having a viscous consistency.

    My mum’s gravy was thick but at least it moved about.
  6. Abounding in number.

    The room was thick with reporters.
    Seashells lay thick on the beach.
  7. Impenetrable to sight.

    We drove through thick fog.
  8. Prominent, strong. Greatly evocative of one's nationality or place of origin.

    He answered me in his characteristically thick Creole patois.
  9. Prominent, strong. Difficult to understand, or poorly articulated.

    We had difficulty understanding him with his thick accent.
  10. Stupid.

    informal
    He was as thick as two short planks.
  11. Friendly or intimate.

    informal
    They were as thick as thieves.
  12. Deep, intense, or profound.

    Thick darkness.
  13. Detailed and expansive; substantive.

    literary
  14. Troublesome; unreasonable.

    UK · dated
  15. Curvy and voluptuous, and especially having large hips.

    slang
Where this word comes from

From Middle English thikke, from Old English þicce (“thick, dense”), from Proto-West Germanic *þikkwī, from Proto-Germanic *þekuz (“thick”), from Proto-Indo-European *tégus (“thick”). Cognates Cognate with North Frisian sjok, tjok, tjuk, tschok (“thick”), Saterland Frisian tjuk (“thick”), West Frisian dik, tuuk (“thick”), Central Franconian deck (“thick”), Cimbrian dikh, dikhe (“thick”), Dutch dik (“thick”), German dick (“thick”), Luxembourgish déck (“thick”), Yiddish דיק (dik, “thick”), Danish tyk (“thick”), Elfdalian tiokk (“thick”), Faroese tjúkkur (“thick”), Icelandic þykkur (“thick”), Norwegian Bokmål and Norwegian Nynorsk tjukk, tykk (“thick”), Scanian tjykker (“thick”), Swedish tjock (“thick”); also Cornish and Welsh tew (“thick”), Irish tiubh, tiugh (“thick”), Manx çhiu (“thick”), Scottish Gaelic tiugh (“thick”).

adv/θɪk/Australia, General-American, Received-Pronunciation/θɘk/New-Zealand
  1. In a thick manner.

    Snow lay thick on the ground.
  2. Frequently or numerously.

    The arrows flew thick and fast around us.
Where this word comes from

From Middle English thikke, from Old English þicce (“thick, dense”), from Proto-West Germanic *þikkwī, from Proto-Germanic *þekuz (“thick”), from Proto-Indo-European *tégus (“thick”). Cognates Cognate with North Frisian sjok, tjok, tjuk, tschok (“thick”), Saterland Frisian tjuk (“thick”), West Frisian dik, tuuk (“thick”), Central Franconian deck (“thick”), Cimbrian dikh, dikhe (“thick”), Dutch dik (“thick”), German dick (“thick”), Luxembourgish déck (“thick”), Yiddish דיק (dik, “thick”), Danish tyk (“thick”), Elfdalian tiokk (“thick”), Faroese tjúkkur (“thick”), Icelandic þykkur (“thick”), Norwegian Bokmål and Norwegian Nynorsk tjukk, tykk (“thick”), Scanian tjykker (“thick”), Swedish tjock (“thick”); also Cornish and Welsh tew (“thick”), Irish tiubh, tiugh (“thick”), Manx çhiu (“thick”), Scottish Gaelic tiugh (“thick”).

noun/θɪk/Australia, General-American, Received-Pronunciation/θɘk/New-Zealand
  1. The thickest, or most active or intense, part of something.

    It was mayhem in the thick of battle.
  2. A thicket.

  3. A stupid person; a fool.

    slang
Where this word comes from

From Middle English thikke, from Old English þicce (“thick, dense”), from Proto-West Germanic *þikkwī, from Proto-Germanic *þekuz (“thick”), from Proto-Indo-European *tégus (“thick”). Cognates Cognate with North Frisian sjok, tjok, tjuk, tschok (“thick”), Saterland Frisian tjuk (“thick”), West Frisian dik, tuuk (“thick”), Central Franconian deck (“thick”), Cimbrian dikh, dikhe (“thick”), Dutch dik (“thick”), German dick (“thick”), Luxembourgish déck (“thick”), Yiddish דיק (dik, “thick”), Danish tyk (“thick”), Elfdalian tiokk (“thick”), Faroese tjúkkur (“thick”), Icelandic þykkur (“thick”), Norwegian Bokmål and Norwegian Nynorsk tjukk, tykk (“thick”), Scanian tjykker (“thick”), Swedish tjock (“thick”); also Cornish and Welsh tew (“thick”), Irish tiubh, tiugh (“thick”), Manx çhiu (“thick”), Scottish Gaelic tiugh (“thick”).

verb/θɪk/Australia, General-American, Received-Pronunciation/θɘk/New-Zealand
  1. To thicken.

    ambitransitive · archaic
Where this word comes from

From Middle English thikke, from Old English þicce (“thick, dense”), from Proto-West Germanic *þikkwī, from Proto-Germanic *þekuz (“thick”), from Proto-Indo-European *tégus (“thick”). Cognates Cognate with North Frisian sjok, tjok, tjuk, tschok (“thick”), Saterland Frisian tjuk (“thick”), West Frisian dik, tuuk (“thick”), Central Franconian deck (“thick”), Cimbrian dikh, dikhe (“thick”), Dutch dik (“thick”), German dick (“thick”), Luxembourgish déck (“thick”), Yiddish דיק (dik, “thick”), Danish tyk (“thick”), Elfdalian tiokk (“thick”), Faroese tjúkkur (“thick”), Icelandic þykkur (“thick”), Norwegian Bokmål and Norwegian Nynorsk tjukk, tykk (“thick”), Scanian tjykker (“thick”), Swedish tjock (“thick”); also Cornish and Welsh tew (“thick”), Irish tiubh, tiugh (“thick”), Manx çhiu (“thick”), Scottish Gaelic tiugh (“thick”).

det/θɪk/Australia, General-American, Received-Pronunciation/θɘk/New-Zealand
  1. Alternative form of thilk (“that same”).

    alt-of · alternative
Where this word comes from

From Middle English thikke, from Old English þicce (“thick, dense”), from Proto-West Germanic *þikkwī, from Proto-Germanic *þekuz (“thick”), from Proto-Indo-European *tégus (“thick”). Cognates Cognate with North Frisian sjok, tjok, tjuk, tschok (“thick”), Saterland Frisian tjuk (“thick”), West Frisian dik, tuuk (“thick”), Central Franconian deck (“thick”), Cimbrian dikh, dikhe (“thick”), Dutch dik (“thick”), German dick (“thick”), Luxembourgish déck (“thick”), Yiddish דיק (dik, “thick”), Danish tyk (“thick”), Elfdalian tiokk (“thick”), Faroese tjúkkur (“thick”), Icelandic þykkur (“thick”), Norwegian Bokmål and Norwegian Nynorsk tjukk, tykk (“thick”), Scanian tjykker (“thick”), Swedish tjock (“thick”); also Cornish and Welsh tew (“thick”), Irish tiubh, tiugh (“thick”), Manx çhiu (“thick”), Scottish Gaelic tiugh (“thick”).

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Definitions, grammatical labels, IPA, etymology and examples: Wiktionary contributors, extracted by Kaikki / Wiktextract. Adapted under CC BY-SA 4.0. Selected fields and authored examples are shown; third-party quotations and audio are omitted. See contributor history.

Last enriched 2026-09-10. Definitions are in English. Romanizations are shown when supplied by the source; syllable estimates are omitted for unsupported scripts.