jaunty

[ jawn-tee, jahn- ]

/ ˈdʒɔn ti, ˈdʒɑn- /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR jaunty ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective, jaun·ti·er, jaun·ti·est.

easy and sprightly in manner or bearing: to walk with a jaunty step.

smartly trim, as clothing: a jaunty hat.

RELATED WORDS

briskly, cheerfully, gaily, happily

Nearby words

jaundice, jaundice of newborn, jaundiced, jaunt, jaunting car, jaunty, jaup, jauregg, julius wagner, jaurès, jaurès, jean, jav.

Origin of jaunty

1655–65; earlier jentee, juntee < French gentil noble, gentle, genteel with ending taken as -y¹

Related formsjaun·ti·ly, adverbjaun·ti·ness, nounun·jaun·ty, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for jauntily

Meanwhile, New York Magazine ran a jauntily satirical article—“Bro, Can You Spare, Like, Five Bills?”
Is There a Ma Joad for the Piketty Era?|Katie Baker|July 1, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Springer jauntily replies, quickly adding that his tawdry syndicated show is probably a more accurate harbinger of the End Times.
Jerry Springer Wants His Privacy|Lloyd Grove|April 18, 2010|DAILY BEAST
And let's not forget death panels, Sarah Palin's jauntily inflammatory phrase for the "Independent Medicare Advisory Board."
Health Care: A Critic's Index|Tunku Varadarajan|December 25, 2009|DAILY BEAST
Dodichet entered the room as jauntily as if it were a tavern, leading his intimate friend by the hand.
San-Cravate; or, The Messengers; Little Streams|Charles Paul de Kock

He dabbed at a cut on his temple from which issued a tiny crimson stream, and jauntily shook back his hair.
Freckles|Gene Stratton-Porter
Lin regarded in silence his brother, who was speaking so jauntily of the first and last home they had ever had.
Lin McLean|Owen Wister
She continued to tingle after he had jauntily departed with his basket and clattered away in his delivery wagon.
Missy|Dana Gatlin
"On the contrary, he's delighted," said Mr. Barrymore jauntily.
My Friend the Chauffeur|C. N. Williamson and A. M. Williamson

British Dictionary definitions for jauntily

jaunty

/ (ˈdʒɔːntɪ) /

adjective -tier or -tiest

sprightly, self-confident, and cheerful; briska jaunty step

smart; trima jaunty hat

Derived Formsjauntily, adverbjauntiness, noun

Word Origin for jaunty

C17: from French gentil noble; see genteel

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 jauntily

jaunty

adj.

1660s, "elegant, stylish," from French gentil "nice, pleasing," in Old French "noble" (see gentle). Form reflects attempt to render the French pronunciation of gentil. Meaning "easy and sprightly in manner" first attested 1670s. Related: Jauntily; jauntiness.