garish

adjective

gar·​ish ˈger-ish How to pronounce garish (audio)
1
: clothed in vivid colors
a garish clown
2
a
: excessively or disturbingly vivid
garish colors
garish imagery
b
: offensively or distressingly bright : glaring
3
: tastelessly showy : flashy
garish neon signs
garishly adverb
garishness noun
Choose the Right Synonym for garish

gaudy, tawdry, garish, flashy, meretricious mean vulgarly or cheaply showy.

gaudy implies a tasteless use of overly bright, often clashing colors or excessive ornamentation.

circus performers in gaudy costumes

tawdry applies to what is at once gaudy and cheap and sleazy.

tawdry saloons

garish describes what is distressingly or offensively bright.

garish neon signs

flashy implies an effect of brilliance quickly and easily seen to be shallow or vulgar.

a flashy nightclub act

meretricious stresses falsity and may describe a tawdry show that beckons with a false allure or promise.

a meretricious wasteland of casinos and bars

Examples of garish in a Sentence

the wedding guest's thick makeup was garish and unnecessary
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Georgie’s cake is equally garish and brilliant and inspired by her auntie’s bathroom, which had a carpet and, most likely, one of those little dolls with a crocheted skirt to hold an extra roll of toilet paper. Brian Moylan, Vulture, 15 Nov. 2024 Ryan enjoys the performances of Quinn and Hechinger, both perversely weird and in garish face powder and recalling Joaquin Phoenix’s incestuous turn in the first film, but the movie doesn’t quite go far enough into the twisted and weird. Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 25 Oct. 2024 Tom did grow up an orphan, under the care of his garish Aunt Dottie. Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 4 Apr. 2024 First exhibited in Italy, these paintings and prints match the exuberance of their sitters with kaleidoscopic colors; their transfers appear enlivened by Warhol’s generous brush or swaths of garish collage. Ara H. Merjian, ARTnews.com, 4 Oct. 2024 See all Example Sentences for garish 

Word History

Etymology

origin unknown

First Known Use

1545, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of garish was in 1545

Dictionary Entries Near garish

Cite this Entry

“Garish.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/garish. Accessed 2 Dec. 2024.

Kids Definition

garish

adjective
gar·​ish ˈga(ə)r-ish How to pronounce garish (audio)
ˈge(ə)r-
: too bright or showy : gaudy
garishly adverb
garishness noun

More from Merriam-Webster on garish

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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