posh

¹

[posh]

adjective

1. sumptuously furnished or appointed; luxurious.

   a posh apartment.

posh

²

[posh]

interjection

1. (used as an exclamation of contempt or disgust.)

posh

/ pɒʃ /

adjective

1. smart, elegant, or fashionable; exclusive

   posh clothes

2. upper-class or genteel

adverb

1. in a manner associated with the upper class

   to talk posh

Other Word Forms

• poshness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of posh¹

1915–20; of obscure origin; compare posh a dandy (recorded as British slang in 1890); the popular notion that the word is an acronym from port out(ward) , starboard home, said to be the preferred accommodation on ships traveling between England and India, is without foundation

Origin of posh²

First recorded in 1920–25

Word History and Origins

Origin of posh¹

C19: often said to be an acronym of the phrase port out, starboard home, the most desirable location for a cabin in British ships sailing to and from the East, being the north-facing or shaded side; but more likely to be a development of obsolete slang posh a dandy

Example Sentences

"There's something shining inside your box," Bird shouted towards the posh seats as he once more took the ire of the crowd.

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Tours of Winfield only allow you to see the ground floor, which is basically a "very posh" area for receptions, and the gardens.

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“Being in New York, staying in a fancy hotel called the Drake that was quite posh with filet steak for fifty bucks felt like the high life,” Townshend says.

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Though far less posh, “The Conjuring” likewise nailed the world-building aspects of its place and time.

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The bandmates dressed in secondhand suits that made them look posh to some and, perhaps more damningly, refused to flatten their class identity into something easily legible.

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Related Words

• chic 
• classy 
• deluxe 
• elegant 
• exclusive 
• fashionable 
• grand 
• high-class 
• luxury 
• opulent 
• ritzy 
• swank 
• swanky 
• trendy 

When To Use

What else does posh mean?

The adjective posh means that something or someone is rich, fancy, or otherwise smells of money.