gaudy

[gaw-dee]

See more synonyms for gaudy on Thesaurus.com

adjective, gaud·i·er, gaud·i·est.

brilliantly or excessively showy: gaudy plumage.
cheaply showy in a tasteless way; flashy.
ostentatiously ornamented; garish.

Origin of gaudy

1520–30; orig. attributive use of gaudy²; later taken as a derivative of gaud

Related formsgaud·i·ly, adverbgaud·i·ness, nounun·gaud·i·ly, adverbun·gaud·i·ness, noun

Synonyms for gaudy

See more synonyms for on Thesaurus.com

2. tawdry, loud; conspicuous, obvious. Gaudy, flashy, garish, showy agree in the idea of conspicuousness and, often, bad taste. That which is gaudy challenges the eye, as by brilliant colors or evident cost, and is not in good taste: a gaudy hat. Flashy suggests insistent and vulgar display, in rather a sporty manner: a flashy necktie. Garish suggests a glaring brightness, or crude vividness of color, and too much ornamentation: garish decorations. Showy applies to that which is strikingly conspicuous, but not necessarily offensive to good taste: a garden of showy flowers; a showy dress.

Antonyms for gaudy

2. modest, sober.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for gaudiness

glamour, glitz, sheen, luster, radiance, glare, show, zap, glisten, twinkle, gleam, flash, shimmer, sparkle, beam, shine, brightness, pageantry, coruscation, splendor

Examples from the Web for gaudiness

Contemporary Examples of gaudiness

There was no mistaking this for the gaudiness and gilt of made-for-TV awards shows.
Streetwear pioneer, visionary entrepreneur, and community mentor Daymond John is honored with Hennessy Privilege Award
Hennessy
January 1, 2015

Historical Examples of gaudiness

Then there were splendid liveries, and all manner of gaudiness, not without some taste.
Journal of a Voyage to Brazil
Maria Graham
In thy apparel avoid singularity, profuseness, and gaudiness.
Book of Wise Sayings
W. A. Clouston
Gaudiness, after all, defeats its own purpose, for it expresses a certain vulgarity.
Book of Etiquette, Volume 2
Lillian Eichler Watson
He achieves effects in gaudiness which even time Italian officer cannot equal.
Europe Revised
Irvin S. Cobb
There was not a sign of gaudiness about her; not a ring, a necklace, or a bracelet.
Cumner & South Sea Folk, Complete
Gilbert Parker

British Dictionary definitions for gaudiness

gaudy

adjective gaudier or gaudiest

gay, bright, or colourful in a crude or vulgar manner; garish

Derived Formsgaudily, adverbgaudiness, noun

Word Origin for gaudy

C16: from gaud

gaudy

noun plural gaudies

British a celebratory festival or feast held at some schools and colleges

Word Origin for gaudy

C16: from Latin gaudium joy, from gaudēre to rejoice

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

Word Origin and History for gaudiness

c.1600, from gaudy + -ness.

gaudy

adj.

"showy, tastelessly rich," 1580s, probably ultimately from Middle English gaudi "large, ornamental bead in a rosary" (early 14c.); but there is a parallel sense of gaudy as "full of trickery" (1520s), from Middle English gaud "deception, trick," from gaudi "a jest, trick," possibly from Anglo-French gaudir "be merry, scoff," from Latin gaudere "rejoice" (see joy).

Alternative etymology of the adjective is from Middle English gaudegrene "yellowish-green" (early 14c.), originally "green dye" obtained from a plant formerly known as weld, from a Germanic source (see weld (n.)), which became gaude in Old French. The English term supposedly shifted sense from "weld-dye" to "bright." As a noun, "feast, festival" 1650s, from gaudy day "day of rejoicing" (1560s).