dude

1 of 2

noun

ˈdüd 

 also  ˈdyüd

1

: a man extremely fastidious in dress and manner : dandy

2

: a city dweller unfamiliar with life on the range (see range entry 1 sense 3b)

especially : an Easterner in the West

3

informal : fellow, guy

The other girls in the program never go out, so I always find myself out with dudes from my program.

—Cosmopolitan

—sometimes used as a term of address

Hey, dude, what's up?

dudish

ˈd(y)üd-ish 

adjective

dudishly adverb

dude

2 of 2

verb

duded; duding

transitive verb

: dress up

—usually used with up

got duded up for the dance

Synonyms

Noun

• beau
• gallant

Examples of dude in a Sentence

Noun

a dude given to sporting expensive suits and flashy jewelry

OK, dude, whatever you say.

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Work on getting rugs and maybe take your shoes off once in a while, but don’t let this dude bully you! —Maggie Fremont, Vulture, 27 June 2025

Steven is a remarkably busy dude, though – not to say that these folks aren’t. —Glenn Garner, Deadline, 26 June 2025

Verb

Better, locals say, to come back in the summer, when it’s all duded up, the Quonset-hut mural and facade glinting in the sun, the cafe’s patio brimming with diners peering down to the rushing water below, people throwing Frisbees on the lawn next door before buying tickets to the matinee. —Sam McManis, Sacramento Bee, 30 Jan. 2024

While many family all-inclusives are beach resorts in Mexico and the Caribbean, some New England lakeside retreats, dude ranches in the mountains, teen-friendly wellness destinations and ski resorts also offer fantastic pay-one-price options. —Karen Cicero, Good Housekeeping, 1 Feb. 2023

Word History

Etymology

Noun

origin unknown

Verb

noun derivative of dude entry 1

First Known Use

Noun

1877, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1899, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing dude

• dude ranch
• wandering dude

Rhymes for dude

• blued
• booed
• brewed
• brood
• chewed
• cooed
• crude
• cued
• feud
• food
• glued
• gude

Kids Definition

dude

noun

ˈd(y)üd

1

: a man who pays excessive attention to his dress : dandy

2

: an Easterner in the West

3

informal : man entry 1 sense 1a, guy

dudish

ˈd(y)üd-ish

adjective