fancy-pants

adjective

fan·​cy-pants ˈfan(t)-sē-ˌpan(t)s How to pronounce fancy-pants (audio)
: overly elegant or refined : la-di-da

Examples of fancy-pants in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web But no—not good enough for these fancy-pants mathematicians who need their own set of characters just to feel special. Eli Burnstein, The New Yorker, 3 Aug. 2023 With crust that's beautifully singed and wondrously puffed, the not-so-basic numbers are polished with fancy-pants ingredients—from Calabrian chile, fennel and sausage to a cacio e pepe riff made with velvety cream sauce, formaggi al pepe and pecorino. Brooke Viggiano, Chron, 12 Mar. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'fancy-pants.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1939, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of fancy-pants was in 1939

Dictionary Entries Near fancy-pants

Cite this Entry

“Fancy-pants.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fancy-pants. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

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