swanky
Americanadjective
adjective
-
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.
He joins us at the swanky Sunset Marquis hotel in West Hollywood where rock stars have gathered for decades in a luxury oasis behind the Sunset Strip.
From BBC • Apr. 23, 2026
Julian lords over not one but two swanky adjoining townhouses stuffed with antiques.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 9, 2026
The Guards control big companies that have been given public contracts for dams, highways and metro lines, hospitals, swanky hotels and coffee shops, according to public disclosures by Revolutionary Guard-controlled companies.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 30, 2026
These days, he can walk to coffee shops and McDonalds from the swanky, $500-a-night hotel he usually stays at, Cayena, in Caracas’ La Castellana neighborhood, a popular haunt for businessmen and diplomats.
From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 12, 2026
Dr. Strayer was invited in 2010 to the Transport Research Lab, a swanky, glass-paneled center in Workingham, about thirty miles west of Central London.
From "A Deadly Wandering: A Mystery, a Landmark Investigation, and the Astonishing Science of Attention in the Digital Age" by Matt Richtel
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.
