What it means
That low-level hunger when you are not starving but you would happily demolish a biscuit or two given half a chance. It sits in that cosy little gap between a proper meal and pure greed, the sort of feeling that sends you rummaging through the cupboard at half four for no good reason. Brits use it constantly, usually as a gentle hint that someone should put the kettle on and find the snacks.
Usage examples
"I am feeling a bit peckish, is there anything in the biscuit tin or shall I nip to the shop?"
"I’m feeling a bit peckish, fancy splitting a packet of biscuits before dinner properly kicks off?"
"She got peckish halfway through the film and ended up raiding the cupboard for crackers and a chunk of cheese."
"Bit peckish, not gonna lie, so I'm raiding the cupboard for crisps before tea."
"We'd only just had lunch and he was already peckish again, sniffing about for toast."
Where it comes from
It comes from peck, the old English verb for picking at food in little bites, the way a bird does. Peckish turns up in English in the late 1600s and settled into meaning slightly hungry rather than properly starving. It’s long been especially common in British and Irish everyday speech.
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