a wee bit more

[GeneD]

"A wee bit more" means 'a little bit more', right? Does the former have any difference from the latter? When I saw 'wee', the first thing I did was looking it up in a dictionary to ensure it's not about urination. That's the primary reason why I'm asking you now. Even knowing that 'wee' can mean 'little', I'm not sure there is no allusion to the other meaning. Is there? Is it slang, or is it acceptable in more formal settings?

 

[probus]

There is no connection between wee in the sense of small and urination although a joker could make one for the sake of humour. Originally wee was Scottish dialect but it has crossed into the mainstream in the stock phrase "wee bit,"

 

[jutfrank]

https://www.etymonline.com/word/wee

 

[probus]

Apart from the phrase "a wee bit" wee is occasionally used, and my sense is that it is slightly jocular. For example a person calling attention to a personal peccadillo or eccentricity might say "It's only a wee one."

 

[GoesStation]

Apart from the phrase "a wee bit" wee is occasionally used in American English, and my sense is that it is slightly jocular. For example a person calling attention to a personal peccadillo or eccentricity might say "It's only a wee one."

We only use wee in a few phrases in American English. It's a normal part of everyday vocabulary in Scottish English.

 

[Rover_KE]

There is no connection between wee in the sense of small and urination although a joker could make one for the sake of humour.

Like this:

When I was just a wee wee tot,
They put me on my wee wee pot
To see if I would wee or not.

But when they saw that I would not,
They took me off my wee wee pot
And put me in my wee wee cot,
And there I wee-weed quite a lot.
(Anon)

 

[Tdol]

Is it slang, or is it acceptable in more formal settings?

I wouldn't use it in a formal situation outside Scotland, and not there either as I'm English.

 

[GeneD]

Is 'wee bit' used primarily by the Scottish and Americans of Scottish descent?

 

[probus]

Is 'wee bit' used primarily by the Scottish and Americans of Scottish descent?

No. Everybody uses wee bit. As I said, it has passed into the mainstream of English.

 

[Tdol]

Less so in British English, where it more or less maintains its regional origins.

 

[Skrej]

In AmE, 'wee-wee' can be a childish slang term for both urination and a penis. Compare that to 'pee-pee' (various spellings) used in the same way.

The second term is just a common feature of young learners shorting a longer term and doubling a syllable to make a kind of diminutive (no pun intended).

Perhaps that's what's also happening with 'wee-wee' as well, versus any actual connection to 'small' or 'urinate', although I'm at a loss to explain what the truncated word would be if such is the case.

'Wee' by itself is not at all common in AmE, even in a set phrase such as 'wee bit'. I'd characterize it as dialectal at best in AmE. I don't think I've ever heard it used in the BrE sense of 'urinate' in AmE.