tony
adjective
high-toned; stylish.
tony
1 American
[toh-nee]
/ ˈtoʊ ni /
adjective
Informal.
tonier,
toniest
Tony
2
American
[toh-nee]
/ ˈtoʊ ni /
noun
-
Tonys
plural
Tony
3
American
[toh-nee]
/ ˈtoʊ ni /
Tony
1
British
/ ˈtəʊnɪ /
noun
tony
2
British
/ ˈtəʊnɪ /
adjective
Usage
What is a Tony? A Tony is an annual award given by the American Theatre Wing (ATW) for excellence in theater production. The Tony award is a black statuette featuring a suspended medallion with the image of the comedy and tragedy mask and the winner’s name, category, and winning year engraved on it. The awards are given out at the Tony Awards ceremony, also known as the Tonys. The Tonys are a televised ceremonial event that features celebrity hosts, musical performances, and Broadway announcements. Typically, the event is seen as one of the most important nights in the theater industry because it gathers many of its most talented performers, directors, and production crews.
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of tony1
An Americanism dating back to 1875–80; tone + -y 1
Origin of Tony2
After the nickname of Antoinette Perry
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.
See Examples For:
With his elevated speech, tony air and throwback attire, he’s like someone from another era; you could see him as one of Jay Gatsby’s pals or a bon vivant who drops by on “Downton Abbey.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026
Mastrangelo ultimately found a sublet: She will be spending $2,520 for a bedroom and private bath in a woman’s house in the tony neighborhood of Russian Hill.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 10, 2026
Now, there has been what he called a “very suspicious fire” in a building in the neighborhood’s tony Highlands where he maintained an office for his crystals company.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 13, 2026
In the 1960s and early ’70s, she is a plucky striver; in later decades, she is another famous author—book tours, awards, hobnobbing with luminaries, Democratic politics, remodeling homes in tony enclaves.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 13, 2026
“Curiosity. Or perhaps envy. We’re clearly dressed for an important party. We do look rather tony, don’t we, Marion?”
From "The Bletchley Riddle" by Ruta Sepetys and Steve Sheinkin
For Rovers boss Tony Mowbray this break will be a positive for a couple of reasons.
From BBC ● Sep. 21, 2026
Amaris Hayes, a 31-year-old Florida-based creator, posted a video comparing Ossoff to Fitzgerald Grant, the fictional president played by Tony Goldwyn in the Shonda Rhimes-created political drama “Scandal.”
From Salon ● Sep. 20, 2026
Duncan Sheik, who earned a Grammy nomination for his ubiquitous 1990s hit “Barely Breathing” and won a Tony Award for composing the music for “Spring Awakening,” died Thursday.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 18, 2026
If eating a bowl of Frosted Flakes in the company of Tony the Tiger is one of your fondest childhood memories, then you already know everything you need to know about the breakfast-cereal business.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 17, 2026
After school, Jay and his friend Tony waited for me outside to walk home.
From "Root Magic" by Eden Royce
“I was in New York for the Tonys, and some of the people in ‘Jellicle Ball,’ ... had competed on ‘Dance Crew.’
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 31, 2026
Or who will spontaneously plan a vacation after seeing something on the Tonys.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 4, 2026
He shared that he actually has three Tonys, not two.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 6, 2026
The equivalent of the UK's Olivier Awards, this year's Tonys ceremony will take place in New York on 7 June, hosted by singer Pink.
From BBC ● May 5, 2026
We can't go on living here, and the Tonys will be home just as Tim's leave's up, and they're sure to leave their Bits behind.
From A Crooked Mile by Oliver [pseud.] Onions
In 2019, Montoya realized he could earn more through Uber: up to $1,800 a week driving in Los Angeles’s tonier neighborhoods.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 21, 2026
Those that did fill up were all in tonier neighborhoods such as Tarzana, Beverlywood and Fairfax.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 23, 2023
Because of the lower property values, even the tonier areas of St. Bernard got less of their damages covered.
From Salon ● Dec. 13, 2022
The beach he was buried near, now called Pleasant Bay, is nestled in an idyllic corner of Chatham, one of the tonier areas of Cape Cod.
From Washington Post ● Nov. 25, 2021
And so on, up the food chain, until tonier brands like Oberlin and Connecticut College had to hold their noses and enter the game too.
From New York Times ● Jan. 23, 2021
The borough of Westminster, home to some of London’s toniest neighborhoods, said in a 2023 report that it sought to collect payment on 13,423 tickets issued to United Arab Emirates vehicles between 2018 and 2022.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 1, 2026
The State Farm move affects some of the county’s toniest neighborhoods — adding another layer of expense and financial risk for homeowners in areas that were already costly and imperiled by wildfires.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 10, 2024
MIAMI—For nearly 2 years, bustling teams of archaeologists—totaling more than 120 researchers on some days—have excavated a sprawling waterfront lot here in one of this seaside city’s toniest neighborhoods.
From Science Magazine ● Apr. 10, 2023
He has described how his parents saved to send him to Winchester College, one of Britain’s toniest and most expensive boarding schools.
From Washington Times ● Oct. 24, 2022
Isabel hastened to make an Alliance with one of the oldest and toniest Families west of Bucyrus and north of Evansville.
From Knocking the Neighbors by George Ade
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.
