downy

adjective

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\ ˈdau̇-nē

downier; downiest

Definition of downy

1 : resembling a bird's down

2 : covered with down

3 : made of down

4 : soft, soothing

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Examples of downy in a Sentence

the downy surface of a ripe peach

Recent Examples on the Web Kristin, with her peculiar features, her downy cheeks. — Emma Cline, The New Yorker, "White Noise," 1 June 2020 Better just lean over and check all those aluminum hangy-downy bits that look like a broken muffler. — Larry Griffin, Car and Driver, "Tested: 1991 Aston Martin Virage Modernizes the the British Brand," 27 May 2020 The scent of your downy crown makes my heart explode. — Bill Weir, CNN, "To my son, born in the time of coronavirus and climate change," 25 Apr. 2020 Before chef David Chang started selling pork buns at his original Momofuku Noodle Bar in New York, few Americans had sampled steamed lotus leaf buns, these downy pillows that, in China and Taiwan, come folded around a variety of meats and garnishes. — Washington Post, "The 10 best breads in the world," 19 Mar. 2020 The first dish out of the gate was a beauty: a rope of cold capellini bound in a hazelnut dressing and garnished with crisp sea asparagus, bits of preserved lemon, a whisper of nori and downy edible flowers. — Tom Sietsema, Washington Post, "Cranes is a little Japanese, a lot Spanish and something to look at," 28 Feb. 2020 The snow had slid from the shoulders of the surrounding low-lying mountains, revealing black jumbled rocks dusted with orange lichen and delicate downy flowers. — Catherine Porter, New York Times, "Drawn From Poverty: Art Was Supposed to Save Canada’s Inuit. It Hasn’t.," 20 Oct. 2019 The fossils include downy feathers for insulation, a fluffy protofeather that most likely belonged to a nonavian dinosaur, and one complex flight feather like those on the wings of modern birds. — John Pickrell, National Geographic, "In a first, fossil dinosaur feathers found near the South Pole," 18 Nov. 2019 Paleontologists now suggest the dinosaur had at least some feathers and their babies could have had a lot of downy plumage. — Jason Daley, Smithsonian, "You Can Now Smell a T. Rex’s Stinky Breath at Chicago’s Field Museum," 17 Oct. 2019

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

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Last Updated

10 Jun 2020

Cite this Entry

“Downy.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/downy. Accessed 9 Jul. 2020.

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More Definitions for downy

downy

adjective

English Language Learners Definition of downy

—used to describe small, soft feathers or something that resembles such feathers

: covered or filled with small, soft feathers or something like them

See the full definition for downy in the English Language Learners Dictionary

downy

adjective

\ ˈdau̇-nē

downier; downiest

Kids Definition of downy

1 : like small soft feathers The flower has downy petals.

2 : covered or filled with small soft feathers or hairs downy chicks

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downy

Definition of downy

Synonyms & Antonyms for downy

Examples of downy in a Sentence

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English Language Learners Definition of downy