honky-tonk

1 of 2

noun

hon·​ky-tonk ˈhäŋ-kē-ˌtäŋk 

ˈhȯŋ-kē-ˌtȯŋk

1

: a usually tawdry nightclub or dance hall

especially : one that features country music

2

: a district marked by places of cheap entertainment

3

: country music that has a heavy beat and lyrics dealing usually with vice or misfortune

honky-tonker

ˈhäŋ-kē-ˌtäŋ-kər 

ˈhȯŋ-kē-ˌtȯŋ-

noun

honky-tonk

2 of 2

adjective

1

: of, used in, or being a form of ragtime piano playing performed typically on an upright piano

2

: marked by or characteristic of honky-tonks

Examples of honky-tonk in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

That realization led him to a collection of honky-tonk stompers, highway ballads and intimate character studies. — Spin Staff, SPIN, 23 June 2026

While country fans crossed the pedestrian bridge to see Cody Johnson and Keith Urban headline Nissan Stadium, Cage the Elephant, Dexter and the Moonrocks, Edgehill, Mod Sun, and New Translations were playing over three stages at Jon Bon Jovi’s Nashville honky-tonk, JBJ’s. — Joseph Hudak, Rolling Stone, 8 June 2026

Adjective

Producers then planned to move the show into a vacant 42nd Street building that once housed New York’s Playboy Club, but after extensive renovations that turned the venue into a working Nashville-style honky-tonk bar, the run was scotched days before previews were to begin last March. — Greg Evans, Deadline, 16 Apr. 2026

Elsewhere on the project, Bowlin, aided by producer David Ferguson (Tyler Childers, Sturgill Simpson), moves between honky-tonk-laden melodies and murder ballads, sometimes even dipping his toe into the sphere of alternative rock. — Chris Barilla, PEOPLE, 11 Apr. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Noun

origin unknown

First Known Use

Noun

1889, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adjective

1899, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Rhymes for honky-tonk

• bonk
• bronk
• cronk
• honk
• tonk