preppy
Americannoun
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a person who is a student at or a graduate of a preparatory school.
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a person who favors or is viewed as favoring clothing style or behavior associated with traditional preparatory schools.
adjective
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of, relating to, or characteristic of preparatory schools or their students.
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of, pertaining to, characteristic of, or being a style in dress or mode of behavior of a preppy.
adjective
noun
Etymology
Origin of preppy
Explanation
Someone who's preppy either attended an expensive, private high school and an Ivy League college — or just dresses that way. The informal preppy comes from "college preparatory school," its shortened form, "prep school," and the resulting noun prep, used to describe graduates of these elite high schools. You can substitute preppy as a noun, too: "The campus is full of preppies — maybe I'll go to art school instead." Preppy style includes dressing in polo shirts, khaki pants, and boat shoes, or looking like you just finished playing tennis or riding a horse.
Vocabulary lists containing preppy
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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.
Describing her own music as “whimsical,” she typically opts for a preppy, ’90s-inspired look to complete the vibe and identifies as a miniskirt warrior.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 3, 2026
“I viewed the brand for preppy styles geared to an older generation,” said Lavinia Gabriele, a 26-year-old New Yorker, who works in retail.
From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 22, 2025
In 1987, David Letterman was taping his late-night show in Las Vegas before rowdy audiences of mostly young men in preppy pullovers and muscle shirts — prototypical bros raised on “Porky’s.”
From New York Times • Jun. 19, 2024
There was that preppy look that we had to play on.
From Salon • Oct. 8, 2023
My mom and Steve want me to be wearing all the preppy clothes, the khakis and the polo shirts with the collar and whatnot.
From "How It Went Down" by Kekla Magoon
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.
