Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of suavity
1400–50; late Middle English < Latin suāvitās pleasantness, equivalent to suāv ( is ) sweet + -itās -ity
Explanation
Suavity is the art of making people like and want to be around you, like the celebrity whose suavity helped him land great movie roles — even though he wasn't the most talented actor to audition. Suavity, pronounced "SWAH-vuh-tee," depends on saying all the right things to "get in good" with everyone around. So, though it is a graceful and often helpful thing to have suavity, it also might be a little less than real: In avoiding any topic that might get the conversation moving in a more lively and even heated direction, those who possess great suavity may also make things a little boring, fake, even. Talking about the weather and where everyone went on vacation does get a bit old.
Vocabulary lists containing suavity
The Vocabulary.com Top 1000
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"The Tell-Tale Heart" by Edgar Allan Poe
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"The Tell-Tale Heart," Vocabulary from the short story
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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.
Suavity is a rarity in the equipment of U. S. playwrights.
From Time Magazine Archive
Suavity was, among other things, badly needed in this selection.
From Time Magazine Archive
Suavity and sophistication�usually with a European atmosphere�are his metier.
From Time Magazine Archive
Suavity of manners, and the graces of the person, combine to complete a most agreeable picture.
From The American Quarterly Review No. XVIII, June 1831 (Vol 9) by Various
Suavity is no more part of the Bismarckian tradition than exactitude.
From Britain at Bay by Wilkinson, Spenser
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.
