swanky
Americanadjective
adjective
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expensive and showy; stylish
a swanky hotel
-
boastful or conceited
Usage
What does swanky mean? Swanky means fancy, stylish, or classy, especially in a showy or expensive way. It is often used informally. Swanky can refer to something that is ostentatious (over the top) or something that is very elegant. Either way, the unifying element is fanciness. Example: Anna doesn’t usually get a chance to eat at fancy restaurants, so she really enjoyed the gourmet food at the swanky office party.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of swanky
Explanation
Swanky things are fancy and stylish, like a swanky hotel lobby with sparkling chandeliers, plush furniture, and elegant guests. You can also call swanky things ritzy or classy. They're expensive and luxurious, like a swanky car, a swanky apartment building with a doorman, or a swanky neighborhood where only movie stars can afford to live. The adjective swanky comes from its less-common synonym swank, which stems from the now-obsolete verb swank, "to behave ostentatiously."
Vocabulary lists containing swanky
"The Landlady" by Roald Dahl
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The Catcher in the Rye
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A Wealth Of Words: Synonyms for "Rich"
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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:
Awards season is around the corner, with opponents ready to duke it out in the ring of swanky luncheons and Hollywood hobnobbing.
From Salon ● Sep. 9, 2026
On Saturday evening, Kielpinski spoke about the importance of replacing the existing building during a swanky fundraiser overlooking the water at Descanso Beach Club in Avalon.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 6, 2026
Mark Moran, a former investment banker, said he got the early inside track on who Trump would choose as his running mate over dinner at L’Annexe, a swanky Georgetown cocktail bar.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 18, 2026
It isn't a lordship with swanky estates or privileges.
From BBC ● Jun. 18, 2026
Mr. and Mrs. Antolini had this very swanky apartment over on Sutton Place, with two steps that you go down to get in the living room, and a bar and all.
From "The Catcher in the Rye" by J. D. Salinger
This is a basic desk from a lesser-known vendor, and I was a bit skeptical when it was offered to me for testing after having used swankier desks from the likes of Vari.
From Seattle Times ● Dec. 28, 2023
They will also have a new pick-up shelf and parking spots for mobile orders, along with a more technologically advanced kitchen and a swankier interior.
From Salon ● Aug. 22, 2023
Cattle deaths from train collisions isn't new in India, though the media's scrutiny of these deaths has increased over the past few years as the country launches newer, swankier trains.
From BBC ● Apr. 6, 2023
If mom-and-pop restaurants specializing in galbi jjim, kimchi jjigae or soondubu disappear, to be replaced by swankier places or chains like Sweetgreen, will Koreatown lose its soul?
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 10, 2022
"It seems hardly possible that your activities would be confined largely to going to the cinema, to the swankier night clubs and eating in the more famed restaurants."
From The Common Man by George Luther Schelling
We met in a cozy bar at the Crockfords, one of the swankiest luxury hotels on the north end of the Las Vegas Strip.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 8, 2026
For decades, the Indian elite have sought escape in Raj-era private clubs and gymkhanas, scattered around the swankiest neighbourhoods in the country's big cities, hillside resorts and cantonment towns.
From BBC ● Jul. 19, 2025
“It is a completely unbelievable but wholly captivating flight into fancy composed of unequal dollops of comedy, romance, poignancy, funny colloquialisms and Manhattan’s swankiest East Side areas captured in the loveliest of colors,” A.H.
From New York Times ● Feb. 27, 2023
It was one of the grandest and swankiest parties held in generations, with pricey tickets and a level of pomp befitting the figurative coronation of the general who had preserved the Union.
From Salon ● Dec. 24, 2022
La Calvados was the swankiest French restaurant in Greater Washington, a city not devoid of swank restaurants.
From Status Quo by Mack Reynolds
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.
