posh
1 Americanadjective
-
posher,
comparative
-
poshest
superlative
interjection
adjective
-
smart, elegant, or fashionable; exclusive
posh clothes
-
upper-class or genteel
adverb
Usage
What else does posh mean? The adjective posh means that something or someone is rich, fancy, or otherwise smells of money.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Adjectives
Etymology
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
Explanation
Things that are posh are swanky, fancy, and high-class. Posh things usually cost a lot of money, too. If something is dirty, cheap, and shoddy, it will never be accused of being posh. Posh things are elegant and expensive. A posh apartment is gorgeous and classy. A posh restaurant has fancy food and you probably have to dress up to go there. Posh places are luxurious and fancy-schmancy. So it's no surprise that rich people tend to like things and places that are posh.
Vocabulary lists containing posh
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Other Words for Home
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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:
The Cotswolds, a famed stretch of English countryside known for its rolling hills, picturesque villages and posh private schools, is drawing more American buyers.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 25, 2026
In 2019, Zendaya expanded her real estate empire to a spread in Encino, Calif., paying a reported $3.97 million for the posh property.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 23, 2026
The Seattle-based airline began nonstop flights to Rome and London earlier this year, flying Boeing 787 Dreamliners outfitted with the posh business-class suites big-spending business and vacation travelers demand today.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 19, 2026
"We have people who, in the posh schools, their uniform is actually more expensive than anyone else's so it really helps them if we can give stuff away," she said.
From BBC ● Aug. 18, 2026
The posh gravy boat was passed around the table.
From "Black Swan Green" by David Mitchell
Demand has risen even in "affluent areas" thanks to "posher schools" charging high fees for certain mandatory uniform items, it said.
From BBC ● Aug. 18, 2026
These days, the 35-year-old’s gigs are at posher places such as London’s Royal Opera House and the Salzburg Festival.
From Seattle Times ● Apr. 19, 2024
His father was a doctor, and he grew up in one of the posher suburbs of Boston.
From New York Times ● Oct. 5, 2021
Shamed at a news conference, he promises to send kids from the closed, poor schools to posher schools, including his alma mater.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 25, 2020
If you just heard her voice next to Mum's you'd say Mum's posher.
From "Black Swan Green" by David Mitchell
To say that Beacon Hill is the poshest part of Boston is not entirely true.
From Scientific American ● Nov. 2, 2023
Nichols’ covenants in Sunset Hill and Mission Hills, two of his poshest neighborhoods, were said by his company to have been copied in more than 50 cities.
From Slate ● Aug. 16, 2023
Faulty lifts, flooding and intolerable noises are just some of the woes that the billionaire residents of one of New York's poshest buildings say they face daily.
From BBC ● Sep. 24, 2021
A nature-inspired playground overlooks a sandy beach with the poshest park restrooms I’ve ever seen.
From Seattle Times ● Mar. 26, 2021
Kingfisher Meadows's the poshest estate in Black Swan Green, most kids reckon.
From "Black Swan Green" by David Mitchell
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.
