chichi

American  

[shee-shee] / ˈʃiˌʃi /

adjective

1. showily or affectedly elegant or trendy; pretentious.

   Synonyms:

   flamboyant, ostentatious, flashy

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noun

1. a chichi person or thing.

2. the quality of being chichi.

chichi ¹ British  

/ ˈtʃiːˌtʃiː /

noun

1. Also (less common): chee-chee. 

   1. a person of mixed British and Indian descent; Anglo-Indian

   2. ( as modifier )

      a chichi accent

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chichi ² British  

/ ˈʃiːˌʃiː /

adjective

1. affectedly pretty or stylish

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noun

1. the quality of being affectedly pretty or stylish

Etymology

Origin of chichi

Borrowed into English from French around 1905–10

Example Sentences

It was a nice hotel, in a chichi part of town, with a bar called the American Bar.

From Slate • Jan. 3, 2025

Cameo was burning $5 million a month on its staff, travel, parties at the Cameo House, and expensive takeout for stars from chichi spots like Sugarfish and Jon & Vinny’s.

From New York Times • Oct. 20, 2023

Kailey Kernick knew she was in trouble when yet another luxury-label boutique moved into Miami’s most chichi shopping area this month.

From Seattle Times • Dec. 24, 2021

Traffic from West L.A. was horrible, of course, and by the time we reached our destination — some chichi Italian place — we were very hungry.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 8, 2021

“An’ if you chiv lully dantymengro where juckos kair panny, a’ter they soom it they won’t jāl adoi chichi no moreus, an’ won’t mutter in dovo tan, and you can keep it cleanus.”

From The English Gipsies and Their Language by Leland, Charles Godfrey