Green’s Dictionary of Slang

1. (US) a coin, a banknote; thus in pl., money.

1848		Spirit of Jefferson (Charleston, VA) 25 July n.p.: ‘I’m not partic’lar, not I,’ (replied Billy.) nor never was. I’d take a widder for my part, if she’s got the ding-bats, and never ask no question, I’m not proud’.
1865		G.A. Sala My Diary in America II 280: I paid for my Kissingen in a five-cent ‘dingbat,’ or ‘spondulick’ — two of the many names given to the fractional currency.
1877		Bartlett Dict. Americanisms (4th edn) 177: Dingbat [...] a piece of money; a cannonball; a bullet.
1895		DN I. 387: Dingbat. Mr. Philip Hale, of the Boston Journal, has been collecting information . . . concerning this word. The following definitions appear: — [...] (5) Money.
1903		Bluefield Daily Tel. (WV) 8 Jan. 2/1: Money has more synonyms than any word in the English language [..] There is in use coin, [...] dingbats, pewter, [...] brass, gold and on and on.
1905		Eve. World 15 July 7/2: If Scotty has the ‘dough’ and he really wants to ‘blow,’ he has struck at last the camp where dingbats talk.

2. a blow or slap on the buttock; thus the hand that administers ones.

1895		DN I. 387: Dingbat. Mr. Philip Hale, of the Boston Journal, has been collecting information . . . concerning this word. The following definitions appear: — [...] (2) Blow or slap on the buttocks.
1913		Sport (Adelaide) 22 Feb. 12/2: They Say [...] That [C]ursing and swearing, which generally ends in using his dingbats on the kids—frightened to hit one his size.

3. (US) verbal squabbling, physical pushing.

1895

DN I. 387: Dingbat. Mr. Philip Hale, of the Boston Journal, has been collecting information . . . concerning this word. The following definitions appear: — [...] (4) Squabble of words or pushing.

4. (US) an affectionate embrace, esp. mothers hugging and kissing their children.

1895

DN I. 387: Dingbat. Mr. Philip Hale, of the Boston Journal, has been collecting information . . . concerning this word. The following definitions appear: — [...] (7) Affectionate embrace of mothers hugging and kissing their children.

5. the penis.

1916		H.N. Cary Sl. of Venery IV (t/s) n.p.: Penis [...] dingbat.
1942		Berrey & Van den Bark Amer. Thes. Sl.
1949		Monteleone Criminal Sl. (rev. edn).
1989		H. Rawson Dict. of Invective (1991) 117: A bumbler or silly person; also the penis. Ding-dong is one of several d words — including ding-a-ling, doodle, dingbat and dork — that combine these two meanings.