dandy

¹dan·dy

noun \ˈdan-dē\

plural dandies

Definition of DANDY

1

: a man who gives exaggerated attention to personal appearance

2

: something excellent in its class

— dan·dy·ish \-dē-ish\ adjective

— dan·dy·ish·ly adverb

Examples of DANDY

1. That was a dandy of a game.
2. <that dandy was willing to spend all day and hundreds of dollars just to get the perfect pair of shoes>

Origin of DANDY

probably short for jack-a-dandy, from ¹jack + a (of) + dandy (origin unknown)

First Known Use: circa 1780

Related to DANDY

Synonyms

beau, Beau Brummell, buck, dude, fop, gallant, jay, lounge lizard, macaroni, pretty boy, toff [chiefly British]

Related Words

coxcomb, fancy Dan, popinjay; blade, cavalier, dasher; clotheshorse, exquisite, swell

Near Antonyms

slob, sloven

Rhymes with DANDY

bandy, brandy, candy, handy, Handy, Kandy, pandy, randy, sandhi, sandy, Sandy, shandy

²dandy

adjective

dan·di·erdan·di·est

Definition of DANDY

1

: of, relating to, or suggestive of a dandy : foppish

2

: very good : first-rate <a dandy place to stay>

Examples of DANDY

1. We thought something was wrong, but he said everything was just fine and dandy.
2. <that's a dandy new racing bike>

First Known Use of DANDY

1792

Related to DANDY

Synonyms

A-OK, A1, awesome, bang-up, banner, beautiful, blue-chip, blue-ribbon, boffo, bonny (also bonnie) [chiefly British], boss [slang], brag, brave, bully, bumper, capital, choice, classic, cool [slang], corking, crackerjack, cracking, excellent, divine, dope [slang], down [slang], dynamite, fab, fabulous, famous, fantabulous [slang], fantastic, fine, first-class, first-rate, first-string, five-star, four-star, frontline, gangbusters (also gangbuster), gilt-edged (or gilt-edge), gone [slang], grand, great, groovy, heavenly, high-class, hot, hype [slang], immense, jim-dandy, keen, lovely, marvelous (or marvellous), mean, neat, nifty, noble, number one (also No. 1), numero uno, out-of-sight [slang], par excellence, peachy, peachy keen, phat [slang], prime, primo [slang], prize, prizewinning, quality, radical [slang], righteous [slang], sensational, slick, splendid, stellar, sterling, superb, superior, superlative, supernal, swell, terrific, tip-top, top, top-flight, top-notch, top-of-the-line, topping [chiefly British], top-shelf, unsurpassed, wizard [chiefly British], wonderful

Antonyms

atrocious, awful, execrable, lousy, pathetic, poor, rotten, terrible, vile, wretched

Related Words

acceptable, adequate, all right, decent, good, OK (or okay), passable, satisfactory, tolerable; better, exceptional, fancy, high-grade, high-test, premium, select, special, superfine; classical, standard, traditional

Near Antonyms

bad, inferior, low-grade, substandard, unsatisfactory; mediocre, middling, second-class, second-rate