swank

[swangk]

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noun

dashing smartness, as in dress or appearance; style.

a swagger.

adjective, swank·er, swank·est.

stylish or elegant.

pretentiously stylish.

verb (used without object)

to swagger in behavior; show off.

Origin of swank

1800–10; compare Scots swank lively, perhaps ultimately representing back formation from Old English swancor lithe; akin to Middle Dutch swanc supple, Middle High German swanken to sway

swank

[swangk]

verb

a simple past tense of swink.

swink

[swingk]British Archaic.

verb (used without object), swank or swonk, swonk·en, swink·ing, noun

labor; toil.

Origin of swink

before 900; Middle English swinken, Old English swincan; akin to swing¹

Related formsswink·er, noun

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

Related Words for swank

posh, fashionable, swanky, fancy, elegant, chic, ritzy, genteel, stylish, trendy, mod, upscale, limited, private, licensed, single, total, select, absolute, chosen

British Dictionary definitions for swank

swank

verb

(intr) to show off or swagger

noun

Also called: swankpot British a swaggering or conceited person

mainly US elegance or style, esp of a showy kind

swagger; ostentation

adjective

another word (esp US) for swanky

Word Origin for swank

C19: perhaps from Middle High German swanken to sway; see swag

swink

verb

(intr) to toil or drudge

noun

toil or drudgery

Derived Formsswinker, noun

Word Origin for swink

Old English swinc, from swincan

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 swank

1809, "to strut" (swanky, n., "attractive young fellow" is recorded from 1508), perhaps related to Middle High German swanken "to sway, totter," and Old High German swingan "to swing." Said to have been a Midlands and southwestern England dialectal word. The noun meaning "ostentatious behavior" is recorded from 1854; adjective sense of "stylish, classy, posh" is from 1913.