dandy
Americannoun
plural
dandies-
a man who is excessively concerned about his clothes and appearance; a fop.
-
Informal. something or someone of exceptional or first-rate quality.
Your reply was a dandy.
adjective
-
characteristic of a dandy; foppish.
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Informal. fine; excellent; first-rate.
a dandy vacation spot.
noun
-
a man greatly concerned with smartness of dress; beau
-
a yawl or ketch
adjective
noun
Other Word Forms
- dandiacal adjective
- dandiacally adverb
- dandily adverb
- dandyish adjective
- dandyishly adverb
- dandyism noun
Etymology
Origin of dandy
First recorded in 1770–80; origin uncertain
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Trotsky was a dazzling speaker and a dandy who “never quite stopped being a clever schoolboy desperate to show others how much he had learned.”
I had a dandy pocketknife, and a darn good dog; that was about all a boy could hope for in those days.
From Literature
I hate the Patriots, and I hate doing this, and maybe down deep I’m thinking, given my prediction record, if I pick them they’ll lose and wouldn’t that be dandy?
From Los Angeles Times
He hit his head on the bedpost and got a dandy black eye.
From Literature
Some gentlemen are dandies, but most dandies are not gentlemen.
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
