dandy
/ˈdæn.di/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: 3.25 in modern English
10
Scrabble Score
5
Letters
2
Syllables
4
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
A man very concerned about his physical appearance, refined language, and leisurely hobbies, pursued with the appearance of nonchalance in a cult of self.
noun
A dandy roller.
noun
A horse-drawn railway carriage used on some branch lines.
adj
Like a dandy, foppish.
adj
Very good; better than expected but not as good as could be.
Example Sentences
- "The gallant young Indian dandy at home on furlough — immense dandies these — chained and moustached — driving in tearing cabs, the pillars of the theatres, living at West End Hotels, — […]"
- "No town-bred dandy will compare with a country-bred one—I mean a downright bumpkin dandy–a fellow that, in the dog-days, will mow his two acres in buckskin gloves for fear of tanning his hands."
- "“Gerald Croft is an attractive chap about thirty, rather too manly to be a dandy but very much the easy well-bred young man-about-town.”"
- "Somebody quite as notorious as Brummell, but whose follies have been far more mischievous; whose eloquence is great, but certainly not always refined; and to whose health many a dandy of whisky has been tossed off."
- "Other notable instances of horse-drawn vehicles for passenger services were the dandies used on the two-mile branch to Inchture of the Perth-Dundee line of the Caledonian Railway […], and the 2½-mile branch of the North British Railway from Drumburgh to Port Carlisle. […] One of the Port Carlisle dandies was preserved at Waverley Station, Edinburgh, for several years, but is now in the Railway Museum at York."
- "That's all fine and dandy, but how much does it cost?"
Etymology
Borrowed from Scots dandy (“a fop; one who is well-dressed”). Of uncertain origin. Possibly from Dandy, a diminutive of Andrew, yet the Scots word is used also in reference to women. Alternatively, possibly a back-formation of Scots dandilly, dandillie (“one who is spoiled or pampered; a "pet"”). Compare English dandle and dander.
Origin
Word Breakdown
- Root: dandy, डंडी, 𑀟𑀁𑀟𑀺𑀕𑀸, दण्डिका
Usage
Inflected Forms
Derived Forms
Phrases
Frequently Paired Words
Synonyms
Antonyms
puritan
untidy person