What does caddied mean?
"Caddied" is the past tense of the verb "caddie," which means to work as a golf caddie — the person who carries a player's bag and clubs around the course and often offers advice on distances, club selection, and reading greens. Caddying has historically been an entry-level job, famously taken up by teenagers and young people seeking summer earnings at golf clubs, though professional tour caddies are highly skilled and well paid. The word derives from French "cadet," meaning a younger son or junior, reflecting the notion of a youthful attendant or assistant. In everyday usage, saying someone "caddied for" a particular player or "caddied at" a particular club clearly signals this occupational sense, keeping it distinct from the unrelated noun "caddy," which refers to a small storage box such as a tea caddy.
verbPast tense and past participle of "caddie": to serve as a golf caddie, carrying a player's clubs and offering advice on course strategy.
- To have worked as a golf caddie, carrying clubs and advising a player during a round.
"As a teenager, she caddied at the local country club every summer to save for college."
"He caddied for his brother during the club championship."
"In the 1970s she caddied at St Andrews, lugging bags across the Old Course."
The word "caddie" traces back to the French "cadet" — meaning youngest son or junior officer — so every golfer's helper carries a little military history on their back.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of caddied
The verb "caddie" comes from the noun "caddie," borrowed into Scots from French "cadet," meaning a younger son, junior officer, or trainee. In 19th-century Scotland the term was applied to errand boys and odd-job men before becoming attached specifically to those who carried golfers' clubs around courses such as St Andrews. The verb form developed naturally from this noun, and "caddied" is simply its regular past-tense inflection.
Related word forms
How caddied is actually used
Informal to neutral register; used almost exclusively in the context of golf. The spellings "caddied" and "caddying" are preferred over "caddied" from "caddy" when referring to the occupation.
Easily confused with caddied
"Caddy" is also a noun for a small container (as in a tea caddy); the verb form "caddied" refers only to acting as a golf caddie.