folksy
Americanadjective
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friendly or neighborly; sociable.
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very informal; familiar; unceremonious.
The politician affected a folksy style.
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belonging to the common people, especially in regard to a conscious use of mannerisms, speech patterns, attitudes, etc..
folksy humor.
adjective
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of or like ordinary people; sometimes used derogatorily to describe affected simplicity
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informal friendly; affable
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of or relating to folk art
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of folksy
Explanation
Something folksy is down-to-earth and comfortable. An airline pilot's folksy voice can be calming to nervous passengers. A folksy restaurant is a modest, familiar kind of place to eat, where the food is plain and you don't need a reservation. A roots or country music group might strive for a folksy look and sound, and a folksy letter has an informal style and colloquial, everyday language. The word folksy was born in the United States in the 1850s, from folk, or "common people."
Vocabulary lists containing folksy
Notes of a Native Son
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Time Bomb
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The Underground Railroad
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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:
She also collaborated with Milo J on “Llora Llora” — a folksy lullaby off the Argentine rapper’s masterpiece “La Vida Era Más Corta.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 29, 2026
And Ted, our folksy hero, is showing real growth.
From Salon ● Sep. 10, 2026
As the action progresses, Doralee brings grit and common sense to the trio, showcasing Parton’s ability to deliver homespun wit without ever falling into folksy caricature.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 26, 2026
He has since reinvented himself as a man of the people, melding a relaxed, folksy style with slick social media videos.
From Barron's ● Jul. 20, 2026
She wore cowboy boots with a long white ruffled skirt and a denim shirt and waved like a beauty queen—a perfect combination of folksy and classy.
From "Hope Springs" by Jaime Berry
L. Scott Caldwell is just as memorable in the role, which she makes completely her own in Kent Gash’s folksier staging.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 24, 2017
For many Koreans, there is a collective shame about the folksier elements of their own culture.
From The Guardian ● May 8, 2017
Or, if you prefer a folksier approach: “Time is a tricky old sow, ain’t she?”
From New York Times ● Mar. 21, 2016
The new “Voices of Pearl Harbor” tour uses a folksier approach, with acoustic guitar and ukulele music playing in the background as Bruner talks about the waterfront and Waikiki, circa 1941.
From Washington Times ● Dec. 20, 2015
It was always sixties music too—I recognized the Beatles and some of the folksier stuff you hear on the classic rock stations.
From "Schooled" by Gordon Korman
With studied informality, the Donner Trail Ranch manages to be both the fanciest and the folksiest in the Reno area.
From Time Magazine Archive
Spirit Lake is distended by a cast of more than four dozen major characters cursed with total recall and the folksiest dialect since Mr. Dooley.
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.
