perky
Americanadjective
-
perkier,
comparative
-
perkiest
superlative
adjective
-
jaunty; lively
-
confident; spirited
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Adjectives
Etymology
Origin of perky
Explanation
If you are a perky person, you are upbeat, lively and positive. A perky friend would be the one who's always up for games and activities and constantly declaring, "Hey guys, this is fun!" Perky is an adjective traditionally used to describe women or girls, like its synonym bubbly. Perky people tend to have lots of energy. They're always smiling and have a generally cheerful disposition. The enthusiasm of perky can be contagious — soon, you'll also be perky, unless you need a quiet, calm or somber moment. In that case, all that happy chatter can quickly become very annoying.
Vocabulary lists containing perky
Crash
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One for the Murphys
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Because of Mr. Terupt
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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.
See Examples For:
There are already a number of nonfiction projects about the case; weird killers always fascinate the public, as do attractive victims: The perky, blond Maddie and Kaylee were lifelong friends.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 29, 2026
She is standing in front of The Barefoot Contessa with her dark hair coaxed into perky curls, wearing a matching aubergine button-down and skirt.
From Salon ● Jul. 11, 2026
Storey said staff who were told to observe Gedel through the hatch in his cell door commented on "his perky demeanour".
From BBC ● May 7, 2026
When Pascal finally slaps Phoenix across the face, the joke is gone and what’s left is a petty, pathetic standoff, scored to Perry’s incongruously perky anthem.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 18, 2025
I did not want to sound like a perky Annie thanking them for rescuing me from the orphanage.
From "Three Little Words: A Memoir" by Ashley Rhodes-Courter
"He's getting perkier and his injured eye looks better," Ms Smith said.
From BBC ● Jan. 20, 2024
The situation evokes both Jean-Paul Sartre’s “No Exit,” where hell is defined as other people, and a perkier than usual episode of “The Twilight Zone.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 11, 2023
They might know areas of the hotel with perkier internet service.
From Washington Post ● Mar. 14, 2023
Its plot and tone exist between the brooding “Dear Evan Hansen” and another, perkier Broadway hit, “Mean Girls.”
From New York Times ● Aug. 10, 2018
“When you get to feeling perkier, I promise to buy you any flavor soda you want!”
From "Hattie Big Sky" by Kirby Larson
The perkiest - by far - turned out to be the 90-year-old election guru so they did the obvious thing and popped him on set.
From BBC ● Nov. 9, 2022
But these touches, not to mention the many needle drops from the era’s perkiest pop and soul, seem hardly necessary when Rylance’s shuffling, quirky brand of distracted optimism is its own engine of folksy positivity.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 2, 2022
The composite purchasing managers’ index, a measure of business activity in which a reading above 50 indicates growth, stood at 59.5 in July, the perkiest since records began in 1998.
From Economist ● Aug. 8, 2013
Michelle Delamor: And speaking of perky, here comes the perkiest of them all.
From Salon ● Mar. 4, 2010
And once everyone was milling around and chatting, Roz began speaking in her perkiest voice.
From "The Wild Robot" by Peter Brown
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.
