dandy

noun dan·dy \ ˈdan-dē \

|Updated on: 5 Aug 2018

Examples: dandy in a Sentence

Definition of dandy

plural dandies

1 : a man who gives exaggerated attention to personal appearance

2 : something excellent in its class

a dandy of a game

—

dandyish

play \-dē-ish\ adjective

—

dandyishly

adverb

See dandy defined for English-language learners

See dandy defined for kids

Examples of dandy in a Sentence

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

Recent Examples of dandy from the Web

The trailer for the novel presents the story in all of its brightly colored glory, with the Fab Four appearing as impish dandies and the frames filled to overflowing with Easter eggs that will delight the band's fans.

— gil kaufman, Billboard, "Watch Trailer for Beatles 'Yellow Submarine' Graphic Novel," 23 May 2018
Into the Night B-2 pilots make fighter pilots look like dandies.

— william langewiesche, The Atlantic, "An Extraordinarily Expensive Way to Fight ISIS," 21 June 2018
A decade later, fashion bloggers were ascendant, abandoning artful focus and giving sidewalk dandies a flicker of fame.

— brenda cronin, WSJ, "A Century of Fashion and Photographic Genius," 1 June 2018
On March 8 in a WIAA Division 2 sectional semifinal, a packed house at New Berlin West saw a dandy between Whitnall (led by the aforementioned Herro) and Pewaukee (led by Wright State recruit Grant Basile).

— jr radcliffe, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Radcliffe: The great individual moments of the past year in Milwaukee-area prep sports," 7 May 2018
Image The Room Noël Coward, Oscar Wilde and other bygone British dandies would have loved my cozy and elegant room, a Regency remake with paneled wooden doors, dark wooden furnishings, a luxurious sleigh bed and black silk robes for lounging.

— seth sherwood, New York Times, "In Bangkok, an Intimate Hotel With an Inky Past," 14 Apr. 2018
Griffin points to 1953's Peter Pan, which portrayed Captain Hook as a prissy dandy who, well, preys on young boys.

— nico lang, Harper's BAZAAR, "Disney's Long, Complicated History with Queer Characters," 21 Mar. 2017
The Dandy Lion docuseries will chart the history of the black fashion dandy from his roots in 18th century through the late 19th and early 20th century Edwardian era through the 1940s Zoot Suits.

— elizabeth wellington, Philly.com, "Viola Davis options Philadelphia author's book on black dandyism for television," 8 Mar. 2018
Foles passed for 352 yards on Sunday vs. the Vikings, including a dandy of a flea-flicker that put the game out of reach in the second half.

— Detroit Free Press, "Super Bowl LII: Patriots vs. Eagles early preview, plus our predictions," 22 Jan. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'dandy.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of dandy

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

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: circa 1780

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

dandy Synonyms

Synonyms

beaut, beauty, corker, crackerjack (also crackajack), doozy (or doozie), dream, honey, humdinger, jim-dandy, knockout, nifty, peach, pip, pippin, standout;

Near Antonyms

bust, disappointment, dud, failure, flop, lemon, letdown, loser, stinker, turkey;

catch, crown jewel, diamond, gem, imperial, jewel, pearl, plum, treasure;

Phrases

something else;

dandy

adjective

Definition of dandy

dandier; dandiest

1 : of, relating to, or suggestive of a man who gives exaggerated attention to personal appearance : foppish

2 : very good : first-rate

a dandy place to stay

I have a couple of friends … who think a recession is a dandy time to try to discover better and cheaper ways to do things.
—Thomas Friedman

See dandy defined for English-language learners

Examples of dandy in a Sentence

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

Recent Examples of dandy from the Web

Adam Garrison as Henry, the tech director in pigtails trying to design tech from a cow’s ear (no budget), delivers a dandy performance as well.

— patti restivo, Howard County Times, "Laurel Mill Playhouse presents 'Laughing Stock'," 6 July 2018
But there were estrangements, and Jackson, a dandy who wore a pencil-thin mustache and huge diamond pinky ring, faced allegations by his wife of infidelity.

— Washington Post, "Joe Jackson, patriarch of musical Jackson family, dies at 89," 27 June 2018
The Morse Museum of American Art in Winter Park offers free admission each year on Independence Day — and a visit makes a dandy way to celebrate our nation’s birthday.

— matthew j. palm, OrlandoSentinel.com, "Morse Museum is free today — don't miss 'Domes of the Yosemite'," 4 July 2018
Joey Votto picked a good time for his first home run in 30 games, and Sal Romano followed his best start of the year with another dandy.

— john fay, Cincinnati.com, "Cincinnati Reds ride Sal Romano's arm, Joey Votto's bat to a 9-5 win over the Detroit Tigers," 19 June 2018
Instead of using common references like wax cloth or Kente prints, Boateng created garments like a teal single-button suit that appeared in Black Panther — a choice that references the uniquely dandy ankara styles of West African gentlemen.

— refinery29.com, "Before Virgil Abloh, There Was Ozwald Boateng," 21 June 2018
The walleye runs on the Sandusky and Maumee rivers are being replaced by a dandy white bass run right now.

— cleveland.com, "Fishing Report for May 11: Western Lake Erie walleye fishing drawing crowds," 11 May 2018
At Weiss, for instance, a swaggering portrait of James Hay, 1st Earl of Carlisle, from the studio of the Jacobean artist William Larkin—a dandy in a face-framing starched white collar and the most fanciful ribbon rosettes on his shoes.

— hamish bowles, Vogue, "Treasures Abound! Hamish Bowles Visits Maastricht for The Fine Arts Fair," 15 Mar. 2018
Here are 100 suggestions for your kids organized by handy-dandy age categories.

— amy schwabe, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "100 things to do with your kids (from babies to teenagers) in the summer in Milwaukee," 21 May 2018