A friend or casual acquaintance.
"I ran into an old buddy from college at the grocery store today."
In plain English: A buddy is a close friend you hang out with and trust.
"I went to the movies with my best buddy this weekend."
Usage: Use "buddy" informally to address a close friend or an acquaintance in casual conversation. Avoid using it in formal settings or when referring to family members unless the relationship is specifically playful.
To assign a buddy, or partner, to.
"The instructor assigned me as his safety buddy for the final dive."
In plain English: To buddy means to become friends with someone.
"The friends decided to buddy up for the hiking trip."
Usage: Use "to buddy" when you are assigning someone a specific partner or companion for an activity, such as pairing students for a project. This usage is informal and implies creating a working relationship rather than just casual friendship.
Resembling a bud.
"The artist carefully arranged the clay so that each small lump resembled a bud before he began to sculpt the flower."
"He is my buddy boy from down south."
Usage: The term "buddy" functions only as a noun and cannot be used as an adjective to mean resembling a bud. To describe something that looks like a flower bud, use the proper adjective "bud-like."
A male nickname.
"When I arrived at the gym, my buddy was already waiting on the treadmill wearing his lucky socks."
The word "buddy" first appeared around 1788 in writings by Charles Dibdin, though its exact origins remain uncertain. It likely evolved either from child talk for "brother," "bruder," or "bruthy," or from the British colloquial term "butty," which originally meant a workmate who shared loot with you.