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hoity-toity

[ hoi-tee-toi-tee ]
/ ˈhɔɪ tiˈtɔɪ ti /
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See synonyms for hoity-toity on Thesaurus.com
adjective
assuming airs; pretentious; highfalutin; haughty: He thinks he's better than we are because he went to one of those hoity-toity private schools.
giddy; flighty.
noun
giddy behavior.
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Origin of hoity-toity

First recorded in 1660–70; reduplicated and altered rhyming compound based on hoit “to romp, riot, play the fool” (now obsolete)

Words nearby hoity-toity

hoise, hoisin, hoisin sauce, hoist, hoist by one's own petard, hoity-toity, Hojo, hoka, Hokan, hoke, hokey
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Words related to hoity-toity

arrogant, dizzy, flighty, giddy, pretentious, silliness, snooty, thoughtless

How to use hoity-toity in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for hoity-toity

hoity-toity
/ (ˌhɔɪtɪˈtɔɪtɪ) /
adjective
informal arrogant or haughtywe have had enough of her hoity-toity manner

Word Origin for hoity-toity

C17: rhyming compound based on C16 hoit to romp, of obscure origin
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
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