sporty
Americanadjective
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sportier,
comparative
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sportiest
superlative
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flashy; showy.
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smart in dress, behavior, etc.
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like or befitting a sportsman.
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dissipated; fast.
a sporty crowd.
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designed for or suitable for sport.
adjective
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(of a person) fond of sport or outdoor activities
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(of clothes) having the appearance of sportswear
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(of a car) having the performance or appearance of a sports car
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Adjectives
Etymology
Origin of sporty
Explanation
Look down. Are you wearing sneakers? Ready to kick a ball, shoot some hoops, or go watch a game? If so, you’re sporty! Sporty things are related to athletics. You are sporty if you love sports, dress like you love sports, or behave like a good sport by saying “good game” even when you lose. Sporty can also describe something fast and flashy, like a sporty red convertible. The oldest recorded meaning of sporty is "sportsmanlike," from the late nineteenth 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:
Founded in 1952 by British engineer Colin Chapman, Lotus gained worldwide renown for sporty cars that outgunned the competition with lighter weight over outright horsepower.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 31, 2026
Experts say it's not just sporty men who are at risk - young women can also be affected, and an early diagnosis can save lives.
From BBC ● May 31, 2026
I’m very outdoorsy, I’m very sporty, so there’s a lot of things that I relate to from a design standpoint.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 14, 2026
Xiaomi, a maker of sporty sedans and SUVs, highlighted its hiring of European designers who worked at automakers such as Porsche and Lamborghini.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 24, 2026
By the time I get outside, I see Justin and Kristina standing by Justin’s car in the parking lot, talking to a gaggle of their sporty and popular friends.
From "Ask the Passengers" by A.S. King
What I can say is that this EV sails along smoothly and quietly while somehow feeling sportier than my Mustang Mach-E or the Tesla Model Y I tested a few years back.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 30, 2026
However the lucky winner preferred sportier models and later exchanged it for a Ferrari whose owner was a true fan of Hallyday's, he added.
From BBC ● Mar. 25, 2025
The Mach-E is also sportier around turns and generally more fun to drive.
From Seattle Times ● Sep. 13, 2023
Picture going for a whirl in a swiveling office chair—or, if you’d prefer a sportier option, popping on a pair of ice skates and taking a spin.
From Scientific American ● Aug. 19, 2022
The bra was sportier than any I'd ever had, but it was cute anyway.
From "We Are Okay" by Nina LaCour
"Our truck is the sportiest truck you are going to see," he said.
From Reuters ● Aug. 4, 2023
Grid View The Max-Out is the sportiest concept, with a low-slung stance and an emphasis on speed and performance.
From The Verge ● Nov. 29, 2021
But the sportiest trim in the Camry lineup is the TRD.
From Seattle Times ● Aug. 11, 2021
Somehow, all of that and less had become the middle weekend of March in America’s sportiest downtown, amid a state so in love with basketball that it ought to be round.
From Washington Post ● Mar. 15, 2020
“This is definitely a first for me. The sportiest thing I’ve ever done is run after the bus,” Juanga says as he ties his shoelace.
From "I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter" by Erika L. Sánchez
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.
