Carey

C3A1R1E1Y4
UK/ˈkɛəɹi//ˈkɛɚ.i//ˈkɛɹ.i/Australia/ˈkeː.ɹi/

proper noun

A hamlet in Ballingham parish and Little Dewchurch parish, Herefordshire, England (OS grid ref SO5631).

OriginProto-Brythonic *karɨd →
CommonScrabble 10
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Meanings

proper nounCarey (countable and uncountable, plural Careys)

plural Careys · alternative Cary

  1. A placename:
    1. countableuncountableA hamlet in Ballingham parish and Little Dewchurch parish, Herefordshire, England (OS grid ref SO5631).
    2. countableuncountableAn unincorporated community in Greene County, Georgia.
    3. countableuncountableA minor city in Blaine County, Idaho.
    4. countableuncountableA village in Crawford Township, Wyandot County, Ohio.
    5. countableuncountableAn unincorporated community in Childress County, Texas.
    6. countableuncountableA town in Iron County, Wisconsin.
    7. countableuncountableAn island of Nunavut, Canada, in James Bay off the coast of Quebec; in full, Carey Island.
  2. A surname.
    1. countableuncountableAn English habitational surname from either of these placenames.
    2. countableuncountableA surname from Irish, anglicized from the Gaelic Ó Ciardha.
    3. countableuncountableA Celtic surname from Welsh, derived from Carew.
  3. A unisex given name.
    1. countableuncountableA male given name transferred from the surname.
    2. countableuncountableA female given name, variant of Cary.

Origin

  1. Proto-Brythonic*karɨd“to love”
  2. EnglishCarey

* As a German surname, Americanized from Gehrig, Gehring. * As a Welsh surname, variant of Carew. * As an English surname, from placenames derived from Proto-Brythonic *karɨd (“to love”). * As an Irish surname, from mac Fhiachra (“descendant of Fiachra”), from préachán (“crow”). * Also as an Irish surname, from the root of the name Kerry.

More words from Proto-Brythonic

Full word history & related roots →

Rhymes & wordplay

Rhymes with Carey

maryvaryhairyordinaryprairiescaryburycarycanarywaryairywiktionarynarybearyunwarypearyeyriecharybilingual dictionarydot and carryfairywrenféerieflaryglairy
All rhymes →

Sounds the same

carry (Mary–marry–merry merger)Kerry (Mary–marry–merry merger)

Anagrams

RaceyCayercraye
Cite this entry
APA

Carey. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Carey

MLA

“Carey.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Carey. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Carey,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Carey.

Source: Carey on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.