coon dick

English

Alternative forms

• coondick, coon-dick

Etymology

From coon +‎ dick. For the alcohol, the term was coined and used during the prohibition era of the 1930s, referring to how African American migrants illegally transported it in the crotch of their pants.

Noun

coon dick (uncountable)

1. (offensive) Bootleg moonshine or other illegal alcohol.
   • 2000, Andy Duncan, Beluthahatchie and Other Stories, page 146:

     I was beginning to think he'd run out of Fuss-X and done filled up instead of home-brewed coon dick, which meant any time now he'd be fighting whatever come near, thinking he was crawling with monkies.

   • 2003, Eric Ware, The Hollywood Colored, page 121:

     The Deacon collected himself and the bartender walked a jar of coon dick over to Rastus.

   • 2006, Cherry Muhanji, Her: A Novel, page 78:

     We broke out the coon dick and everybody got drunk.

   • 2010, Alan Duff, Dreamboat Dad:

     Guess most the men got drunk on Saturday nights, coon dick they drank, they gambled on Florida Flip, craps, Sissy in the Barn, cooncan; whooped and hollered and sometimes argued and fought with fists, a knife sometimes, gun incidents became lore, like some of the characters did.

   • 2023, Zora Neale Hurston, She Rock:

     Thus drank he many fingers of moonshine and swallowed much coon-dick.

2. The penis bone of a raccoon, typically used as a toothpick or good luck charm.
   • 2015, Elizabeth Massie, Sineater:

     "Oh, you want to see this," says the boy. “It's a coon dick.” A tiny, leathery hit of tissue on a length of blue yarn is swung in Joel's face.

   • 2018, Robert Gordon, Memphis Rent Party: The Blues, Rock & Soul in Music's Hometown:

     They were leading a discussion about coon dicks, the penises of raccoons made into necklaces and worn for good luck.

   • 2018, William A. James Sr., Hard Times and Survival:

     Ya must gotta a lucky 'Coon's Dick' in ya pocket, man. Or, ya got's-ta be cheatin', or somethin', damn!”

3. Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see coon,‎ dick.
   • 2018, Midnite Love, Finessed By Becky Fooled By Tyrone, →ISBN, page 43:

     Here she was thinking she had a strapping black Mandingo and she ended up with an Uncle Tom, Ain't no way her pussy was gon' get wet for coon dick.