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Synonyms

waxy

1 American  
[wak-see] / ˈwæk si /

adjective

waxier, waxiest

  1. resembling wax in appearance or characteristics.

    His face had a waxy shine.

  2. abounding in, covered with, or made of wax.

    Be careful! The floor is waxy.

  3. pliable, yielding, or impressionable.

    a waxy personality.
waxy 2 American  
[wak-see] / ˈwæk si /

adjective

Chiefly British.
waxier, waxiest

  1. angry.

waxy 1 British  
/ ˈwæksɪ /

adjective

  1. resembling wax in colour, appearance, or texture

  2. made of, covered with, or abounding in wax

"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
waxy 2 British  
/ ˈwæksɪ /

adjective

  1. informal bad-tempered or irritable; angry

"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

Other Word Forms

  • waxily adverb
  • waxiness noun

Etymology

Origin of waxy1

First recorded in 1545–55; wax 1 + -y 1

Origin of waxy2

First recorded in 1850–55; wax 3 + -y 1

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.

The oaks have waxy, cup-shaped leaves — not only do they rarely go up in flame, but they can catch embers out of the sky and extinguish them, Yelchin said.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 14, 2024

For example, drought prompts plants to thicken the waxy cuticle layer on leaf surfaces.

From Science Daily • Nov. 19, 2024

Six thousand trees — nearly all of them varieties of Coffea arabica, the most widely consumed and best-tasting coffee species — sit in neatly planted rows, their waxy, deep green leaves shimmering in the sun.

From Salon • Jul. 24, 2024

The starting price was £300,000 for the 'standard Spanish waxy napkin' which is 16.5 x 16.5cm and was laminated and framed.

From BBC • May 17, 2024

Manchee jumps out with a waxy squirrel drooping in his mouth, bigger and browner than the ones from the swamp.

From "The Knife of Never Letting Go" by Patrick Ness

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.