frumpy

[ fruhm-pee ]

/ ˈfrʌm pi /

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See synonyms for frumpy on Thesaurus.com

adjective, frump·i·er, frump·i·est.

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“Was” is used for the indicative past tense of “to be,” and “were” is only used for the subjunctive past tense.

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Origin of frumpy

First recorded in 1740–50; frump + -y¹

OTHER WORDS FROM frumpy

frump·i·ly, adverbfrump·i·ness, noun

Words nearby frumpy

frumentaceous, Frumentius, frumenty, frumious, frump, frumpy, Frunze, frusemide, frustrate, frustrated, frustration

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use frumpy in a sentence

In another, he says that Triffon’s female friends “look really frumpy and overweight” after seeing a picture of them in swimsuits.
New Jeopardy! Host Mike Richards Steps Down Amid Criticism. But He's Not Leaving the Show Entirely|Megan McCluskey|August 20, 2021|Time
The fleece half-zip as part of the classic frumpy Dad ensemble!
One night in Cancun: Ted Cruz’s disastrous decision to go on vacation during Texas storm crisis|Ashley Parker|February 19, 2021|Washington Post
More hokey than the inspired objects recalled by the curators: A frumpy teddy bear.
We All Have a Rosebud in Our Pasts|Sam Roberts|October 15, 2014|DAILY BEAST
In the novel, Newton takes up with a frumpy, unlettered Kentucky woman well into middle age.
‘The Man Who Fell to Earth’ Is a Classic Twice over—as a Movie and a Novel|Malcolm Jones|February 9, 2014|DAILY BEAST

It's like she is in Fashion Jail and only allowed to wear frumpy dated Sloane florals and old lady canary yellow.
Is Pippa Middleton Just Very Badly Dressed?|Tom Sykes|September 27, 2013|DAILY BEAST
But relative next to our toned and styled first lady, it was stodgy and frumpy.
Michelle Obama’s Signs of Fashion Restraint on Election Night|Isabel Wilkinson|November 7, 2012|DAILY BEAST
Gabrielle (Eva Longoria) became a frumpy mother of two overweight daughters.
‘Desperate Housewives’: 12 Most-Memorable Moments|Maria Elena Fernandez|May 14, 2012|DAILY BEAST
"Do you know, I really liked her better last year, when she was frumpy and dowdy," faltered Dopsy.
Mount Royal, Volume 3 of 3|Mary Elizabeth Braddon
If she had been a stiff, frumpy thing, I just couldn't have paid the least attention to her.
Brenda's Ward|Helen Leah Reed
She has never ceased to talk about the frumpy crowd she met there.
Contrary Mary|Temple Bailey
Men don't marry frumpy, snuffy old things of thirty, or thereabouts.
Dawn O'Hara, The Girl Who Laughed|Edna Ferber
I have been a grumpy, frumpy, wayward sort of a woman, a good many years.
The Personal History of David Copperfield |Charles Dickens

British Dictionary definitions for frumpy

frumpy

frumpish (ˈfrʌmpɪʃ)

/ (ˈfrʌmpɪ) /

adjective

(of a woman, clothes, etc) dowdy, drab, or unattractive

Derived forms of frumpy

frumpily or frumpishly, adverbfrumpiness or frumpishness, noun

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

frumpy

Origin of frumpy

OTHER WORDS FROM frumpy

Words nearby frumpy

Words related to frumpy

How to use frumpy in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for frumpy

frumpish (ˈfrʌmpɪʃ)

Derived forms of frumpy