sandy
adjective
of the nature of or consisting of sand.
sandy
1 American
[san-dee]
/ ˈsæn di /
sandy
British
/ ˈsændɪ /
adjective
-
consisting of, containing, or covered with sand
-
(esp of hair) reddish-yellow
-
resembling sand in texture
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Adjectives
Etymology
Origin of sandy
before 1000; Middle English; Old English sandig. See sand, -y 1
Explanation
Something that looks like sand, feels like sand, or is covered in sand is sandy. A sandy beach is lovely; a sandy bed is just uncomfortable. If your dog tracks sand indoors and spreads it all over the place, you've got a sandy house. If your sister's hair is the brownish color of sand, you can describe it as sandy too. And if you spill your ingredients when you're making a cake, you might realize that sugar and flour both look a little sandy when they're on the floor. Sandy comes from the Old English sandig, "of the nature of sand."
Vocabulary lists containing sandy
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 trees would absorb enormous volumes of water, thrive in the sandy soil and slow coastal erosion.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 30, 2026
Possibly singed and mostly sandy, they storm the Mediterranean and return to their grills wet, steaming, and triumphant.
From Salon ● Aug. 11, 2026
"It's not all ice creams and sandy beaches and turquoise seas," says Dominic Wilkes, a headteacher who moved from Greater Manchester to Bude in North Cornwall.
From BBC ● Aug. 6, 2026
The forest sees 15 million visitors each year, making it vulnerable to fires -- quite apart from its sandy soil and vegetation consisting of ferns and highly flammable conifers.
From Barron's ● Jul. 14, 2026
As far back as 3500 B.C., the Sumerians, the original inhabitants of this area, mastered irrigation and flood control to create a fertile oasis amid the sandy plains of what is now Iraq.
From "The Annotated Mona Lisa" by Carol Strickland and John Boswell
The Texas case is only one part of the massive financial judgments against Jones stemming from his Sandy Hook lies.
From Salon ● Aug. 22, 2026
Sandy Ginther uses a 3-D printer to make custom fixtures that keep clutter at bay.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 15, 2026
“While Waymo is receiving its permits today, expansion will be gradual and guided by its safety framework,” said Waymo spokesperson Sandy Karp.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026
Sandy and Luna, two eaglets raised by Jackie and Shadow this year, were last seen in the area on July 23.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026
“All of us here at Sandy June’s believe in you. It’s important that you know that.”
From "Legendary Frybread Drive-In" by Cynthia Leitich Smith
In the drier, sandier areas of the western Kalahari Desert and Namibia, Khoisan speakers remained the dominant group until more recent times.
From Textbooks ● Apr. 19, 2023
Mr McCann says this huge number was necessary because "the same crop can look very different if it was planted in, say, sandier soil compared to soil that gets lots of rain and sun".
From BBC ● Feb. 26, 2023
Muscovado sugar is similar to brown sugar but with a much stronger flavor and a damper, sandier texture...
From Salon ● Dec. 10, 2022
Or the wines of the Marne Valley, where the sandier soils have their own softer expression.
From Washington Post ● Dec. 6, 2019
Sometimes it wanders up into middle California, but not often, seeming to prefer the more deserted, hotter, and sandier parts of southern California, and from there stretching its habitat as far east as middle Texas.
From Donahoe's Magazine, Vol. XV, No. 4, April, 1886 Volume 15 (January 1886 - July 1886) by Various
You reverse what you tried for going up and aim for the sandiest places in order to glissade down.
From Slate ● Oct. 22, 2014
The road was the sandiest and least traveled that he experienced.
From Washington Times ● Jul. 26, 2014
He smacked the ground face-first in the world’s sandiest belly flop.
From "Caterpillar Summer" by Gillian McDunn
"That feller thet jest went out is your brother's new foreman, Ken Douglass, the sandiest galoot an' best cowman on this range," he concluded.
From The Song of the Wolf by Frank Mayer
Hubbardson will utilize the sandiest soil of any northern variety, preferring rich, fine, sandy loams.
From Apple Growing by M. C. Burritt
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.
