definitions

stuffed shirt

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR stuffed shirt ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a pompous, self-satisfied, and inflexible person.

RELATED CONTENT

Why Do We Call It A “Wife Beater” Shirt?How did a violent term become a piece of clothing? We’re in a bubbling cauldron of gender issues, and they’re boiling to the surface. To contribute to this heated discussion, we think there’s no better time to take wife beater, the slang term for that ubiquitous sleeveless white shirt, to the dump for good. But, how did the violent term become associated with a piece …
READ MORE
Why The Turducken Is One Of The Best Word Plays Of All TimeIt's Thanksgiving time, and while some folks will be piling their plates with turkey and mashed potatoes, we can't pass on the opportunity to consider a dish named with one of the greatest portmanteaus of all time: the turducken.
READ MORE

RELATED WORDS

blimp, twit

Nearby words

stuff one's face, stuff shot, stuff the ballot box, stuffed, stuffed derma, stuffed shirt, stuffer, stuffing, stuffing and stripping, stuffing box, stuffing nut

Origin of stuffed shirt

An Americanism dating back to 1910–15
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

British Dictionary definitions for stuffed shirt

stuffed shirt

noun

informal a pompous or formal person
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

Idioms and Phrases with stuffed shirt

stuffed shirt

An overly formal or pompous person, as in She's such a stuffed shirt that I'm surprised you'd invite her to a barbecue. This expression alludes to a shirt filled with paper (instead of a real person). [c. 1900]

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.