ritzy
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of ritzy
An Americanism first recorded in 1915–20, after the Ritz hotels founded by César Ritz (died 1918), Swiss entrepreneur; see ritz, -y 1
Explanation
Something ritzy is expensive and fancy, like a ritzy living room decorated with heavy brocade curtains and plush velvet cushions. If you're ever invited to a ritzy party, you'll want to dress up in your most luxurious clothes and prepare to enjoy delicious food and opulent decor. The informal adjective ritzy implies luxury that's a little over the top. It was coined around 1910, inspired by the famously elegant Ritz Hotels (™) that César Ritz opened starting internationally in the late 19th century.
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:
Once a working-class port city, now Vlore has a beachfront lined with ritzy bars, restaurants catering to tourists, and blocks of hotels.
From Slate ● Sep. 8, 2026
The public had also bid $15,000 on the olive-green painted wood front gates to the only home Monroe ever owned in the ritzy Brentwood neighbourhood.
From BBC ● Jun. 4, 2026
The Hilton, in a ritzy Washington neighborhood, has long hosted the White House correspondents’ dinner.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 26, 2026
Guests sipped on water and wine, though some were irked by the delay given their tight schedules and ritzy dinners that awaited them.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 22, 2026
I catch the midnight bus from Steve's ritzy part of town over to Underhill.
From "How It Went Down" by Kekla Magoon
One of the ritzier camps, Midway employs a staff of cooks and personal valets and boasts an extensive wine cellar.
From Salon ● Sep. 22, 2023
The Western diplomat estimates that the proportion of women refusing to publicly wear the hijab in the ritzier neighbourhoods of north Tehran is even higher than 20%.
From BBC ● Sep. 15, 2023
Reports said Komuro’s shaky standing will improve with the imperial family, the couple may move from Hell’s Kitchen in Manhattan to a ritzier neighborhood, and Komuro’s mom may move in with them.
From Seattle Times ● Oct. 21, 2022
Detractors who bristle at Tan and Wang’s depiction of China as a backwater will surely find some solace in Crazy Rich Asians, which highlights the continent’s ritzier, less tradition-bound present.
From Slate ● Aug. 17, 2018
Cordelia’s family moves to a different, larger house, in a ritzier neighborhood farther north.
From "Cat's Eye" by Margaret Atwood
Fraisse put it to me, pointing to two of the capital’s ritziest addresses.
From Slate ● Mar. 30, 2023
The Galleria, in the heart of Fletcher’s district, is one of the largest and ritziest malls in the United States.
From Washington Post ● Mar. 2, 2020
The startup even planned a grand showcase in late August at Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, one of the ritziest car shows in the world.
From The Verge ● Dec. 31, 2018
L.A.’s Xanadu: It’s the type of location moguls dream of: 120 acres of undeveloped land in one of L.A.’s ritziest pockets.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 16, 2018
One of my black classmates, a nerdy boy who was always kind to everyone, had parents who’d founded a big beauty-supply company and lived in one of the ritziest high-rises downtown.
From "Becoming" by Michelle Obama
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.
