Dick is a

nickname A nickname is a substitute for the proper name of a familiar person, place or thing. Commonly used to express affection, a form of endearment, and sometimes amusement, it can also be used to express defamation of character. As a concept, it is ...

most often for Richard, which likely originated in the Middle Ages as rhyming slang for "Rick", as did William →‎ Will →‎ Bill and Robert →‎ Rob →‎ Bob. The modern association with "penis" is more recent, arising from Dick becoming a cliché name for any man, as in Tom, Dick and Harry. Occasionally it was given as a nickname for other proper names as well but has generally fallen out of favour except for comic intent.

Notable people

Dick Assman Richard Arthur "Dick" Assman (February 14, 1934 – August 15, 2016) was a Canadian gas station employee whose name propelled him to celebrity status across North America for four months in 1995. Career In 1995, Assman moved from working at one ...

(1934–2016), Canadian gas station worker *

Dick Gregory Richard Claxton Gregory (October 12, 1932 – August 19, 2017) was an American comedian, civil rights leader, business owner and entrepreneur, and vegetarian activist. His writings were best sellers. Gregory became popular among the Afric ...

(1932–2017), American civil rights activist and comedian * Dick Lee (disambiguation), multiple *

Dick Wolf Richard Anthony Wolf (born December 20, 1946) is an American film and television producer, best known for his ''Law & Order'' franchise. Since 1990, the franchise has included six police/courtroom dramas and four international spinoffs. He is al ...

American television producer

Business

Richard S. Fuld Jr. Richard Severin Fuld Jr. (born April 26, 1946) is an American banker best known as the final chairman and chief executive officer of investment bank Lehman Brothers. Fuld held this position from the firm's 1994 spinoff from American Express until ...

(born 1946), American banker best known as the final chairman and chief executive officer of Lehman Brothers * Dick Graves (1912-1990), American casino owner *

Dick Smith (entrepreneur) Richard Harold Smith (born 18 March 1944) is an Australian entrepreneur, aviator and philanthropist. He holds a number of aviation world records and is the founder of Dick Smith Electronics, ''Australian Geographic'' and Dick Smith Foods. He ...

, Australian businessman *

Dick Teague Richard Arthur Teague (December 26, 1923 – May 5, 1991) was an American industrial designer in the North American automotive industry. He held automotive design positions at General Motors, Packard, and Chrysler before becoming Vice President o ...

(1923–1991), American industrial designer

Crime

Richard Hickock Richard Eugene Hickock (June 6, 1931 – April 14, 1965) was one of two ex-convicts convicted of murdering four members of the Clutter family in Holcomb, Kansas on November 15, 1959, a crime made famous by Truman Capote in his 1966 non-fiction n ...

(1931—1965), one of the murderers of the Clutter family, the subject of the book and film " In Cold Blood" *

Dick Turpin Richard Turpin (bapt. 21 September 1705 – 7 April 1739) was an English highwayman whose exploits were romanticised following his execution in York for horse theft. Turpin may have followed his father's trade as a butcher ea ...

(1705–1739), English highwayman executed for horse theft

Entertainment

* Dick Cavett (born 1936), American television talk show host *

Dick Clark Richard Wagstaff Clark (November 30, 1929April 18, 2012) was an American radio and television personality, television producer and film actor, as well as a cultural icon who remains best known for hosting '' American Bandstand'' from 1956 to 19 ...

(1929–2012), American radio and television personality *

Dick Contino Richard Joseph "Dick" Contino (January 17, 1930 – April 19, 2017) was an American accordionist and singer. Early life Contino was born in Fresno, California. He was the son of Mr. and Mrs. Peter Contino, and he attended Fresno High School. H ...

(1930–2017), American accordionist *

Dick Couch Dick Couch is an American author, professor, and former U.S. Navy SEAL. Early life and education Couch was born in Mississippi and raised in Southern Indiana. He graduated from the United States Naval Academy in 1967. After attending Drone Anti- ...

, American writer *

Dick Dale Richard Anthony Monsour (May 4, 1937 – March 16, 2019), known professionally as Dick Dale, was an American rock guitarist. He was a pioneer of surf music, drawing on Middle Eastern music scales and experimenting with reverb. Dale was known a ...

(1937—2019), American musician known as "King of the Surf Guitar" * Dick Jensen (1942—2006), Musical performer *

Dick King-Smith Ronald Gordon King-Smith OBE (27 March 1922 – 4 January 2011), was an English writer of children's books, primarily using the pen name Dick King-Smith. He is best known for ''The Sheep-Pig'' (1983). It was adapted as the movie ''Babe'' (1995 ...

(1922-2011), English author *

Richard McCourt Richard "Dick" McCourt (born 12 August 1976) is an English entertainer and presenter. He is best known as one half of the comic duo Dick and Dom, with the other being Dominic Wood. His older brother is fellow television presenter James McCou ...

(born 1976), TV presenter and comedian known for

Dick and Dom Dick and Dom (originally Richard and Dominic) are a British comedy double act consisting of the presenters Richard "Dick" McCourt and Dominic "Dom" Wood. They are primarily known for presenting 'the broom cupboard' presentation links on Childr ...

* Dick Powell (1930–1963), American actor and musician *

Dick Sargent Richard Stanford Cox (April 19, 1930 – July 8, 1994), known professionally as Dick Sargent, was an American actor, notable as the second actor to portray Darrin Stephens on ABC's fantasy situation comedy ''Bewitched''. He took the name ''Dick ...

(1930–1994), American actor *

Dick Shawn Dick Shawn (born Richard Schulefand, December 1, 1923 – April 17, 1987) was an American actor and comedian. He played a wide variety of supporting roles and was a prolific character actor. During the 1960s, he played small roles in madcap comed ...

(1923–1987), American actor and comedian * Dick Smothers (born 1939), one of the American folk singer-comedian

Smothers Brothers The Smothers Brothers are Thomas ("Tom" – born February 2, 1937) and Richard ("Dick" – born November 20, 1938), American folk singers, musicians, and comedians. The brothers' trademark double act was performing folk songs (Tommy on acoustic gu ...

* Dick Van Dyke (born 1925), American actor, comedian, writer and producer *

Dick Van Patten Richard Vincent Van Patten (December 9, 1928 – June 23, 2015) was an American actor, comedian, businessman, and animal welfare advocate, whose career spanned seven decades of television. He was best known for his role as patriarch Tom Brad ...

(1928–2015), American actor *

Dick York Richard Allen York (September 4, 1928 – February 20, 1992) was an American radio, stage, film, and television actor. He was the first actor to play Darrin Stephens on the ABC fantasy sitcom ''Bewitched''. He played teacher Bertram Cates in th ...

(1928–1992), American actor

Military

* Frederick Ashworth (1912–2005), United States Navy officer * Richard Joseph Audet (1922–1945), Canadian fighter pilot ace during World War II * Richard "Dick" Halsey Best (1910-2001) Former commanding officer of Enterprise bombing squadron 6 (VB-6), hit 2 carriers in the

Battle of Midway The Battle of Midway was a major naval battle in the Pacific Theater of World War II that took place on 4–7 June 1942, six months after Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor and one month after the Battle of the Coral Sea. The U.S. Navy under ...

and is credited for sinking the Japanese aircraft carrier Akagi by himself with a singular 1000 lb bomb."Midway 42: IJN Carrier Damage"
/ref> *

Richard Bong Richard "Dick" Ira Bong (September 24, 1920 – August 6, 1945) was a United States Army Air Forces major and Medal of Honor recipient in World War II. He was one of the most decorated American fighter pilots and the country's top flying ace ...

(1920 - 1945), top flying ace of the US during World War II, decorated war hero, National Aviation Hall of Fame inductee *

Richard Marcinko Richard Marcinko (November 21, 1940 – December 25, 2021) was a U.S. Navy SEAL commander and Vietnam War veteran. He was the first commanding officer of SEAL Team Six. After retiring from the United States Navy, he became an author, radio talk ...

(born 1940), former United States Navy officer and retired Navy SEAL *

Richard Winters Richard Davis Winters (January 21, 1918January 2, 2011) was an American businessman and decorated war veteran who served as a U.S. Army officer during World War II. He is best known for having commanded Easy Company of the 2nd Battalion, 506th ...

(1918–2011), an officer of the United States Army and decorated war veteran

Politics

Dick Armey Richard Keith Armey (; born July 7, 1940) is an American economist and politician. He was a U.S. Representative from Texas's (1985–2003) and House Majority Leader (1995–2003). He was one of the engineers of the "Republican Revolution" of t ...

(born 1940), American politician and member of US House of Representatives from Texas (1985–2003) * Dick Cheney (born 1941), American politician who served as the 46th Vice President of the United States from 2001 to 2009 *

Dick Clark (senator) Richard Clarence Clark (born September 14, 1928) is an American politician who represented the state of Iowa in the United States Senate from 1973 to 1979. Early life Richard Clarence Clark was born on September 14, 1928, in Paris, Iowa. He g ...

(born 1928), American politician and US Senator from Iowa (1973–1979) *

Dick Durbin Richard Joseph Durbin (born November 21, 1944) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the senior United States senator from Illinois, a seat he has held since 1997. A member of the Democratic Party, Durbin has served as the Senate De ...

(born 1944), American politician and US senator from Illinois serving as Senate Majority Whip * Richard "Dick" Gordon (born 1945), Filipino politician and broadcaster *

Richard Lamm Richard Douglas Lamm (August 3, 1935 – July 29, 2021) was an American politician, writer, and attorney. He served three terms as 38th Governor of Colorado as a Democrat (1975–1987) and ran for the Reform Party's nomination for Preside ...

(1935–2021), American politician, writer, Certified Public Accountant, college professor, and lawyer * Richard Lugar (1932–2019), American Senator who served from 1977 to 2013 * Richard Lyon (1923–2017), United States Navy admiral and former mayor of Oceanside, California * Dick Thornburgh (1932–2020), American politician, Governor of Pennsylvania (1979–1987), and US Attorney General (1988–1991)

Sports

Dick Advocaat Dirk Nicolaas Advocaat (; born 27 September 1947) is a Dutch former football player and coach who is currently the head coach of Eerste Divisie side ADO Den Haag. Advocaat was successful as a football player and as a coach, including three stint ...

(born 1947), Dutch football manager and former player * Dick Ambrose (born 1953), former American football linebacker in the National Football League *

Dick Attlesey Richard Attlesey (May 10, 1929 – October 14, 1984) was an American sprinter who mostly competed in the 110-meter hurdles. He set world records for the event twice in 1950 with times of 13.6 and 13.5 seconds. Attlesey won the 110 m hur ...

(1929–1984), American hurdler *

Dick Ault Richard Francis Ault (December 10, 1925 - July 16, 2007) was an American hurdler who finished fourth in the Men's 400 metres hurdles at the 1948 Summer Olympics. He set a 440-yard hurdle world record of 52.2 on August 31, 1949 at Bislett Stadion ...

(1925–2007), American Olympian *

Dick Barber Richard Alvah Barber (July 24, 1910 – May 22, 1983) was an American long jumper. Barber won the long jump at the 1932 United States Olympic Trials and qualified for the 1932 Summer Olympics, where he played fifth. He was IC4A long jump champion ...

(1910–1983), American long jumper *

Dick Bavetta Richard W. Bavetta (born December 10, 1939) is an American retired professional basketball referee for the National Basketball Association (NBA). Since starting in 1975, he had never missed an assigned game and holds the league record for most off ...

(born 1939), American retired professional basketball referee for the National Basketball Association (NBA) * Dick Butkus (born 1942), former American football player, sports commentator, and actor * Dick Conger (1921–1970), American major league baseball pitcher * Dick Cox (1897–1966), American baseball player *

Dick Davis (running back) Dick CE. Davis (born November 28, 1946) is a former American football running back who played one season in the National Football League (NFL) with the Denver Broncos and New Orleans Saints. He was drafted by the Cleveland Browns in the twelfth r ...

(born 1946), American football player * Dick Davis (defensive end) (born 1938), American football player * Dick Deer Slayer, American football player *

Dick Enberg Richard Alan Enberg (January 9, 1935 – December 21, 2017) was an American sportscaster. Over the course of an approximately 60-year career, he provided play-by-play of various sports for several radio and television networks, including N ...

(1935–2017), American sportscaster *

Dick Fencl Richard John Fencl (February 24, 1910 – June 25, 1972) was an American football end who played one season with the Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League. He played college football at Northwestern University and attended St. Phili ...

(1910–1972), American football player *

Dick Groat Richard Morrow Groat (born November 4, 1930) is a former professional baseball and basketball player who was an eight-time All-Star shortstop and two-time World Series champion in Major League Baseball. He rates as one of the most accomplished t ...

(born 1930), American baseball and basketball player *

Richard Head (footballer) Henry Richard Head (3 April 1887 – 20 December 1940 in Adelaide, South Australia), was an Australian rules football player who played 143 games with West Adelaide in the South Australian Football League (SAFL). Career Head made his league ...

, Australian rules footballer *

Dick Hoblitzell Richard Carleton "Dick" Hoblitzell (October 26, 1888 – November 14, 1962) played first base in the major leagues from 1908 to 1918. He played for the Cincinnati Reds and Boston Red Sox. Nicknamed "Doc" by his teammates, Hoblitzell's baseball car ...

(1888–1962), American Major League Baseball player * Dick Hurley (1847–aft. 1916), American baseball player *

Dick Ives Richard C. Ives (April 26, 1926 – May 5, 1997) was an American basketball player for the University of Iowa from 1943–44 to 1946–47. A native of Diagonal, Iowa, Ives passed up the opportunity to play college basketball at Drake University o ...

(1926–1997), American basketball player * Dick Johnson (footballer) (1895–1933), English footballer *

Dick Johnson (racing driver) Richard 'Dick' Johnson (born 26 April 1945) is a part-owner of the V8 Supercar team Dick Johnson Racing and a former racing driver. As a driver, he was a five-time Australian Touring Car Champion and a three-time winner of the Bathurst 1000. ...

(born 1945), Australian touring car driver and team owner *

Dick Johnson (rugby league) A.C. "Dick" Johnson (1916–1984) was an Australian professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1930s and 1940s. He played for Newtown, South Sydney, Western Suburbs and Canterbury-Bankstown as a fullback. Background Johnson was ...

(1916–1984), Australian rugby league footballer * Dick Johnson (sailor) (1923–2005), American sailor * Dick Johnston (1863–1934), American baseball player *

Dick Johnston (journalist) Richard W. Johnston (June 11, 1919 – November 6, 2008), was a Canadian sports journalist. A columnist for ''The Buffalo News'', he won the Elmer Ferguson Memorial Award in 1986 and is a member of the media section of the Hockey Hall of Fame Th ...

(1919–2008), Canadian sportswriter * Dick King (American football) (1895–1930), American football player *

Dick Murdoch Hoyt Richard Murdoch (August 16, 1946 – June 15, 1996) was an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring names "Dirty" Dick Murdoch and "Captain Redneck". He was best known for his time in the World Wrestling Federation and New Jap ...

(1946–1996), American professional wrestler * Dick Pole (born 1950), American baseball player and coach *

Dick Pound Richard William Duncan Pound (born March 22, 1942), better known as Dick Pound, is a Canadian swimming champion, lawyer, and spokesman for ethics in sport. He was the first president of the World Anti-Doping Agency and vice-presi ...

(born 1942), Canadian swimming champion and first president of the World Anti-Doping Agency *

Dick Reynolds Richard Sylvannus Reynolds (20 June 1915 – 2 September 2002) was an Australian rules footballer who played for the Essendon Football Club in the Victorian Football League (VFL). Reynolds is one of four footballers to have won three Brownlow ...

(1915–2002), Australian rules footballer who represented Essendon in the Victorian Football League (VFL) * Dick Ricketts (1933–1988), American basketball and baseball player *

Dick Rutkowski Richard Rutkowski is a pioneer in the fields of hyperbaric medicine, diving medicine and diver training, especially in relation to the use of breathing gases. Background Rutkowski joined the US government service in 1950 and served during the ...

, diving medicine pioneer *

Dick Savitt Richard Savitt (March 4, 1927 – January 6, 2023) was an American tennis player. In 1951, at the age of 24, he won both the Australian and Wimbledon men's singles championships. Savitt was mostly ranked world No. 2 the same year behind fellow ...

(born 1927), American tennis player *

Dick Schweidler Richard Matthew Schweidler (August 18, 1914 – March 18, 2010) was an American football player who played three seasons with the Chicago Bears of the National Football League (NFL). He attended La Grange High School in La Grange, Illinois. He w ...

(1914–2010), American football player *

Dick Shikat Richard I. Shikat (11 January 1897 – 3 December 1968) was a German professional wrestler and World Heavyweight Champion who was active in the early portion of the twentieth century. Shikat was considered to be one of the most dangerous 'hooker ...

(1897–1968), German professional wrestler and World Heavyweight Champion *

Dick Shiner Richard Earl Shiner (born July 18, 1942) is a former professional American football quarterback who played in eleven National Football League (NFL) seasons from 1964 to 1974 for the Washington Redskins, Cleveland Browns, Pittsburgh Steelers, New ...

(born 1942), American football player *

Dick Stanfel Richard Anthony Stanfel (July 20, 1927 – June 22, 2015) was an American football player and coach with a college and professional career spanning more than 50 years from 1948 to 1999. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame as a pla ...

(1927–2015), American football player * Dick Such (born 1944), American baseball player and coach *

Dick Tayler Richard John Tayler (born 12 August 1948) is a former New Zealand runner who mostly competed in distances from 1500 m to 10,000 m. Tayler was born in Timaru in 1948. He is best known for winning the 10,000 metres at the 1974 Commonw ...

(born 1948), New Zealand long-distance runner *

Dick Trickle Richard Leroy Trickle (October 27, 1941 – May 16, 2013) was an American race car driver. He raced for decades around the short tracks of Wisconsin, winning many championships along the way. Trickle competed in the ASA, ARTGO, ARCA, All ...

(1941–2013), American race car driver * Dick Vermeil (born 1936), National Football League Coach *

Dick Vitale Richard John Vitale (; born June 9, 1939), also known as "Dickie V", is an American basketball sportscaster. A former head coach in the college and professional ranks, he is well known for his 41-year tenure as a college basketball broadcaster f ...

(born 1939), American basketball sportscaster *

Dick Wagner (baseball) Richard Wagner (October 19, 1927 – October 5, 2006) was a sports, entertainment, and broadcasting executive who spent twenty-five years in Major League Baseball. He was best known for running the Cincinnati Reds during the 1970s and the Houston ...

(1927–2006), American baseball executive * Dick Woodson (born 1945), American baseball player

Fictional characters

Dick and Jane ''Dick and Jane'' are the two main characters created by Zerna Sharp for a series of basal readers written by William S. Gray to teach children to read. The characters first appeared in the ''Elson-Gray Readers'' in 1930 and continued in a sub ...

, main characters in a children's reading book series *

Dick Grayson Richard John "Dick" Grayson is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, commonly in association with Batman and Teen Titans. Created by writer Bill Finger and artist Bob Kane, he first appeared in ''Detective Comics ...

, the name of Robin and other superheroes in the

DC Universe The DC Universe (DCU) is the fictional shared universe where most stories in American comic book titles published by DC Comics take place. Superheroes such as Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Robin, Martian Manhunter, The Flash, Green Lant ...

* Dick Harper, one of the title characters in a 1977 film Fun with Dick and Jane that was remade in 2005 * Dick Loudon, the main character in the TV show

Newhart ''Newhart'' is an American sitcom television series that aired on CBS from October 25, 1982, to May 21, 1990, with a total of 184 half-hour episodes spanning eight seasons. The series stars Bob Newhart and Mary Frann as an author and his wife, ...

Dick Solomon Dr. Dick Solomon is a character played by John Lithgow in the late-1990s NBC sitcom '' 3rd Rock from the Sun''. Solomon is the High Commander of a highly trained alien unit, sent to Earth by their leader, The Big Giant Head. His crew is made up o ...

, the High Commander of the alien visitors in 3rd Rock from the Sun * Dick Tracy, comic strip referencing another usage of dick as slang for detective * Dick Whitman, the birth name of

Donald Draper Donald Francis Draper, born Richard “Dick” Whitman, is a fictional character and the protagonist of the AMC television series ''Mad Men'' (2007–2015), portrayed by Jon Hamm. Up to the Season 3 finale, Draper was creative director of fict ...

, the main character in

Mad Men ''Mad Men'' is an American period drama television series created by Matthew Weiner and produced by Lionsgate Television. It ran on the cable network AMC from July 19, 2007, to May 17, 2015, lasting for seven seasons and 92 episodes. Its f ...

* Dick Gansey III from The Raven Cycle

References

{{Nickname Lists of people by nickname English masculine given names