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  • airy
    airy
    adjective
    open to a free current of fresh air; breezy.
  • Airy
    Airy
    noun
    Sir George Biddell . 1801–92, British astronomer, noted for his estimate of the earth's density from gravity measurements in mines; astronomer royal (1835–81)
Synonyms

airy

American  
[air-ee] / ˈɛər i /

adjective

airier, airiest
  1. open to a free current of fresh air; breezy.

    airy rooms.

  2. consisting of or having the character of air; immaterial.

    airy phantoms.

  3. light in appearance; thin.

    airy garments.

  4. light in manner; sprightly; lively.

    airy songs.

    Synonyms:
    merry, jaunty
  5. light in movement; graceful; delicate.

    an airy step.

  6. light as air; unsubstantial; unreal; imaginary.

    airy dreams.

    Synonyms:
    illusory, fanciful
  7. visionary; speculative.

  8. performed in the air; aerial.

  9. lofty; high in the air.

  10. putting on airs; affected; snobbish.

    an airy debutante posing for society photographers.


airy 1 British  
/ ˈɛərɪ /

adjective

  1. abounding in fresh air

  2. spacious or uncluttered

  3. nonchalant; superficial

  4. visionary; fanciful

    airy promises

    airy plans

  5. of or relating to air

  6. weightless and insubstantial

    an airy gossamer

  7. light and graceful in movement

  8. having no material substance

    airy spirits

  9. high up in the air; lofty

  10. performed in the air; aerial

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Airy 2 British  
/ ˈɛərɪ /

noun

  1. Sir George Biddell . 1801–92, British astronomer, noted for his estimate of the earth's density from gravity measurements in mines; astronomer royal (1835–81)

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of airy

1350–1400; Middle English ayery; see air 1, -y 1

Explanation

An airy place is full of fresh air. Other airy things are either light like air or without substance like air. Air surrounds us, and it has a lot of meanings. If a place is described as airy, that means it's full of fresh air. An open stadium is airy, while a stuffy apartment is not. If a house has lots of open windows, it's airy. Also, an argument that has no substance can be called airy, because there's nothing to it. Light things are airy too: a flimsy, light dress or a low-fat dessert could both be called airy.

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Vocabulary lists containing airy

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.

In 2022, she and members of her lab designed and 3D-printed a flexible and versatile tool known as an Airy beam-enabled binary acoustic metasurface that allowed them to manipulate ultrasound beams.

From Science Daily • Jun. 17, 2024

Pond's successor, George Airy, became fed up of this and limited the access to once a week, on a Monday.

From BBC • May 27, 2024

"It really looked apocalyptic," said festival volunteer Evi Airy.

From Reuters • Sep. 4, 2023

In Mount Airy, N.C., the hometown of actor Andy Griffith, which bills itself as the fictional and idyllic Mayberry of the 1960s “Andy Griffith Show,” we meet Wendy Odum.

From Washington Post • Aug. 26, 2022

Airy was a fierce little boy with a sword, and I’m just a grey mouse girl with a pail.

From "A Clash of Kings" by George R.R. Martin