foppish
Americanadjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of foppish
Explanation
A man who is constantly checking out his outfit in the mirror might be foppish, or someone who loves dressing up in fancy clothes. For some reason, foppish is almost always used to describe men (not women), and that's why the word might make you think of an elegant suit, vest, and tie, and probably some over-the-top details like a flower in a buttonhole and a polka-dotted handkerchief. The word foppish also implies that this guy probably thinks he looks pretty good.
Vocabulary lists containing foppish
Talk Like Shakespeare Day, List 2
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East of Eden
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"St. John's Eve" by Nikolai Gogol
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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.
Freeman makes the most of the Lion’s scene-stealing silliness, reveling in the skittish big cat’s foppish hamminess.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 15, 2024
Voisin, who has the mother-of-pearl skin that Balzac writes about, is perfectly cast as the naïve young poet who generates pity when he is foppish and humiliated at the theater.
From Salon ● Jun. 10, 2022
They’ve also made a celebrity of his foppish head of hair, a cross between a traditional mullet and ’80’s hair band singer.
From Seattle Times ● Apr. 23, 2022
Batman co-creator Bob Kane wrote in his 1998 autobiography “Batman and Me”: “The rich foppish Don Diego, Zorro’s alter ego, inspired Bruce Wayne’s facade of being a bored, wealthy idler and playboy.”
From Washington Post ● Dec. 29, 2020
Men began to wear their handkerchiefs in their sleeves and some foppish lieutenants carried swagger sticks.
From "East of Eden" by John Steinbeck
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.
