chivvy [late 18th century] Chivvy means "tell someone to do something repeatedly". It is probably from the ballad title Chevy Chase, celebrating a skirmish (probably the battle of Otterburn in 1388) on the Scottish border. Originally use was as a noun for a hunting cry; the term later meant "a pursuit", hence the verb sense "to chase, worry" which arose in the mid 19th century.

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