blowsy
Americanadjective
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having a coarse, ruddy complexion.
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disheveled in appearance; unkempt.
adjective
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(esp of a woman) untidy in appearance; slovenly or sluttish
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(of a woman) ruddy in complexion; red-faced
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of blowsy
First recorded in 1760–70; obsolete blowze “wench” (of uncertain origin) + -y 1
Explanation
Someone who's blowsy is disheveled and frumpy. Your blowsy Aunt Jan might have long, messy hair and wear slightly shabby clothes. Traditionally, the adjective blowsy has been used mainly to describe dowdy older women, although it sometimes implies a perceivable sexuality as well. You can also describe lush, overblown flowers that are a bit past their peak bloom as blowsy: "I prefer daisies, but my mom is partial to big, blowsy roses." The word dates from the 17th century and comes from a now-obsolete term for "a beggar's female companion," blowze.
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:
Parker Posey’s blowsy Southern mama probably has the best shot from ‘The White Lotus’’ large cast of scene-stealers.”
From Los Angeles Times ● May 23, 2025
Another one of Haskins’ quilts, “Peacocks in Purple,” worked in tonal shades of purple and blue with green accents, hung in the garden framed by blowsy hydrangeas blooms in a similar color palette.
From Seattle Times ● Aug. 26, 2022
Together they came up with an equally humiliating formula, pairing Lisa’s blowsy old actor persona with this violent new format to create The Comeback, perhaps the best comedy about television in the 21st century.
From The Guardian ● Jun. 15, 2019
At other times Exley's smoky eloquence turns blowsy and verbose.
From Slate ● Aug. 10, 2015
She was a blowsy woman with dyed yellow hair, and from time to time we saw her out in the front yard, chopping wood or filling a scuttle from the coal pile.
From "The Glass Castle" by Jeannette Walls
If you want to tame their wild look, surround blowsier plants with the structure of a close-clipped edge or a low hedge.
From Seattle Times ● Jan. 26, 2024
For a long time jazz, the blowsiest of the arts, has needed to have its hair combed and its socks pulled up.
From Time Magazine Archive
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.
