Green’s Dictionary of Slang

1. to divide up, usu. illicit profits; thus divvy man, one who blackmails criminals for a share of their profits.

1880		S.A. Mackeever Glimpses of Gotham and City Characters 67/1: I’m to have the [burglar’s tools] and the plan of that house in 110 th street. If I do the thing, you’re to divvy.
1882		Nat. Police Gaz. (NY) 28 Jan. 11/3: The two men, unsuspicious of danger, were ‘divying up’ the spoils .
1886		‘Lady Kate, the Dashing Female Detective’ in Roberts et al. Old Sleuth’s Freaky Female Detectives (1990) 26/3: He was a ‘divvy’ man, a fellow who would run down a noted criminal, and then place him under a sort of tithing or blackmailing system.
1889		Dead Bird (Sydney) 14 Dec. 4/1: ‘When we divvy np we ought to have enough to take our long talked of trip to California’.
1893–4		H. Lawson ‘Stiffner and Jim’ in Roderick (1972) 128: Bill divvied up all right, and gave me half-a-crown over.
1898		Edinburgh Eve. News 9 Apr. 3/5: After counting through her money [she] offered to ‘divvy up’ [...] if I would not kick up a riot.
1907		Sun. Times (Perth) 3 Feb. 1/1: The identity of the bloke who divvied the £750 with Browne is being sought for.
1908		A. Stringer Under Groove 18: It wasn't untU Dinney and I had divvied our swag that I wanted to travel eastward.
1909		G.R. Bacchus Pleasure Bound ‘Ashore’ 86: ‘You’d best just divvy ’em up [i.e. presents] equally,’ said Mike.
1912		J. London Smoke Bellew (1926) 84: We’ve got agreements. If they fire us they’ve got to divvy up grub to last us through the winter.
1914		J. McCree ‘Types’ Variety Stage Eng. Plays 🌐 To avoid a yanking collar I have divied with the sleuth.
1924		‘Digit’ Confessions of a Twentieth Century Hobo 177: Let’s go somewhere to divvy up. Fifty-fifty.
1924		Truth (Brisbane) 27 Apr. 5/7: 'Come across with the mazums; come clean, divvy. I want the coin, see?’.
1929		W.R. Burnett Little Caesar (1932) 45: Sit down and we’ll divvy.
1936		J. Curtis Gilt Kid 173: We’d better divvy up here [...] so as we don’t have to carry these bloody cash-boxes around.
1947		S. Lewis Kingsblood Royal (2001) 135: They either divvy their beer and bolony with you, or they hate you.
1952		(con. 1920s) ‘Harry Grey’ Hoods (1953) 220: Speaking of dough [...] That reminds me. Let’s divvy up.
1954		J. Thompson Swell-Looking Babe 123: We couldn’t decide on how to divvy the dough.
1960		E. De Roo Big Rumble 140: Boxes of ammo were on the counter being divvied into paper bags.
1966		H.S. Thompson Hell’s Angels (1967) 239: There was talk of divvying up the axe handles in the store.
1972		(con. 1916) G. Swarthout Tin Lizzie Troop (1978) 127: Den Uyl suggested [...] they divvy up the gasoline and go their separate ways.
1985		(con. 1969–70) D. Bodey F.N.G. (1988) 220: The lifers take over and divvy the beer out by company, so that each squad gets a case.
1993		G. Disher Deathdeal [ebook] Divvy the two million and split.
1996		P. Howard The Joy (2015) [ebook] We get back to the flat, divvy it [i.e. stolen money] up, and go our separate ways.
1998		Source Nov. 162: Bone has been shown how their money is being accounted for. How they divvy it up is on them.
2000		J.J. Connolly Layer Cake 51: He’s carried on divvyin up the sovs.
2003		J. Lethem Fortress of Solitude 362: He and I and Mathew had spent the waning hours of that first afternoon divvying Arthur’s quarter kee into Camden-sized portions.
2008		R. Price Lush Life 122: Eyeing the staff, mentally divvying up the room .
2011		J.J. Connolly Viva La Madness 150: Now he’s giving out orders and divvying up money.
2012		D. Whish-Wilson ‘In Savage Freedom’ in Crime Factory: Hard Labour [ebook] Danny and his friends divvy up the eight hundred cash.
2013		T. Pluck ‘Junkyard Dog’ in Life During Wartime (2018) 203: The anvil fetches a good price. We divvy up.
2021		T. Pluck Boy from County Hell 14: Her betrayers were elsewhere, divvying up the take.
2023		A. Nette Orphan Road 39: [T]he proceeds [were] divvied up among the surviving relatives of the gang.

2. (US) to separate.

1934		B. Appel Brain Guy (1937) 54: Bill said [...] he was going to divvy up.
1948		(con. 1944) N. Mailer Naked and Dead 508: We’ve got to divvy up into the two squads.