v. U.S. colloq. Also ki-hi. [Echoic. According to Farmer, of Negro origin.] intr. To howl or yelp as a dog, or utter a sound compared to this.
1869. Mrs. Stowe, Oldtown Folks, 332 (Cent.). Hang him [a dog] we did, and he ki-hied with a vigor that strikingly increased the moral effect.
Hence Ki-yi sb., the howl or yelp of a dog; a whoop; a shout of exultation.
1883. J. Hay, Bread-Winners, 219. You ought to have heard the ki-yi’s that followed.
1886. Detroit Free Press, 4 Aug. (Farmer, Americanisms). Now and then you will hear a joyous ki-yi come from the direction of some woolly-headed worker.
