ritz

[rits]

noun

ostentatious or pretentious display.

verb (used with object)

Slang. to treat with condescension; snub: The star ritzed the reporters and got a bad press.

Idioms

put on the ritz, Informal. to live in elegance and luxury, especially to make an ostentatious show of one's wealth: They put on the ritz to impress their guests.Also put on the Ritz.

Origin of ritz

First recorded in 1925–30; after the sumptuous hotels founded by César Ritz (died 1918), Swiss entrepreneur

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

Examples from the Web for ritz

Contemporary Examples of ritz

I had the privilege of interviewing Mohammed Assaf before he took the stage at The Ritz.
Gaza to Jersey: A Star is Born
Maysoon Zayid
November 25, 2013
And Truth Revolt plans to bring active pressure to bear on sponsors and advertisers, as it is doing with Ritz and Sharpton.
Al Sharpton, ‘PoliticsNation’ Advertisers Targeted in New Boycott
David Freedlander
October 7, 2013
The first Sharpton sponsor the group is targeting is Ritz Crackers, owned by Chicago-based Mondelez International.
Al Sharpton, ‘PoliticsNation’ Advertisers Targeted in New Boycott
David Freedlander
October 7, 2013
Moments later, Hudson gives the Kaiser yet another gift: a blue teddy bear, which, of course, he got at the Ritz.
Karl Lagerfeld Shows His Paternal Side in Carine Roitfeld Documentary
Isabel Wilkinson
September 3, 2013
“It sounds kind of silly, but I really loved him,” says Ritz, 60.
Yes, Ron Paul Has 4,000 Babies
McKay Coppins, Nina Strochlic
January 3, 2012

Historical Examples of ritz

RITZ, innkeeper who made hotels in which we all would like to stop, but cannot.
Who Was Who: 5000 B. C. to Date
Anonymous
I thought it was to be at the Ritz and we've been hanging about there for a dog's age.
Miss Pat at Artemis Lodge
Pemberton Ginther
The only thing I learnt was that she was staying at the "Ritz."
An Onlooker in France 1917-1919
William Orpen
At about four o'clock, when we returned to the Ritz, Coralie was baffled.
Man and Maid
Elinor Glyn
And greatly exhilarated, I decided to go and lunch with Maurice at the Ritz.
Man and Maid
Elinor Glyn

British Dictionary definitions for ritz

ritz

noun

put on the ritz to assume a superior air or make an ostentatious display

Word Origin for ritz

from the luxury hotels created by the Swiss hotelier César Ritz (1850–1918)

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 ritz

Ritz

"high quality, superiority," 1910 (Ritzian, adj., is attested by 1908), in reference to the luxurious Ritz hotels in New York, London, Paris, etc., commemorating Swiss hotelier César Ritz (1850-1918). To put on the ritz "assume an air of superiority" is recorded from 1926. A verb ritz "to behave haughtily" is recorded from 1911.