tony
adjective
high-toned; stylish.
tony
1 American
[toh-nee]
/ ˈtoʊ ni /
adjective
Informal.
tonier,
toniest
Tony
2
American
[toh-nee]
/ ˈtoʊ ni /
noun
-
Tonys
plural
Tony
3
American
[toh-nee]
/ ˈtoʊ ni /
Tony
1
British
/ ˈtəʊnɪ /
noun
tony
2
British
/ ˈtəʊnɪ /
adjective
Usage
What is a Tony? A Tony is an annual award given by the American Theatre Wing (ATW) for excellence in theater production. The Tony award is a black statuette featuring a suspended medallion with the image of the comedy and tragedy mask and the winner’s name, category, and winning year engraved on it. The awards are given out at the Tony Awards ceremony, also known as the Tonys. The Tonys are a televised ceremonial event that features celebrity hosts, musical performances, and Broadway announcements. Typically, the event is seen as one of the most important nights in the theater industry because it gathers many of its most talented performers, directors, and production crews.
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of tony1
An Americanism dating back to 1875–80; tone + -y 1
Origin of Tony2
After the nickname of Antoinette Perry
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:
Hawks spent two decades working as an executive assistant at the Sacred Hearts School, a private Catholic school in the tony Silicon Valley town of Atherton, before her retirement in 2021.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 1, 2026
She’s tried them everywhere from McDonald’s to Michelin-starred haunts, in tony European hamlets and Midwestern hockey towns.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 31, 2026
Now, there has been what he called a “very suspicious fire” in a building in the neighborhood’s tony Highlands where he maintained an office for his crystals company.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 13, 2026
The expansive Spanish-style abode is located in the tony Spanish Oaks community of the Texas city and offered four bedrooms and 3.5 bathrooms, as well as just over one acre of land.
From MarketWatch ● May 1, 2026
Nothing was brokn broken except for tony isnt happy and silly all the time like he used to be.
From "Stella by Starlight" by Sharon M. Draper
Turn the whole internet off and on again: If you’ve heard rumblings about the cybersecurity vulnerability threatening the web but don’t know what’s going on, senior tech editor Tony Ho Tran is here to explain.
From Slate ● Nov. 5, 2026
It was also moving to see that Stew and Rodewald’s Tony Award-winning book still delivers laughs and pathos two decades on.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 5, 2026
In 2007, Sir Tony said the UK's involvement in the slave trade was a matter of "deep sorrow and regret".
From BBC ● Nov. 4, 2026
There are many metrics by which to measure the success of “Oh, Mary!,” the Tony Award-winning play that has taken the stage by storm.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 3, 2026
So much had changed since she and Tony stood together in the shadow of the molasses tank.
From "I Survived the Great Molasses Flood, 1919" by Lauren Tarshis
This year’s opening number, a show-stopping Tonys tradition, will feature more than 170 Broadway performers.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 5, 2026
Or who will spontaneously plan a vacation after seeing something on the Tonys.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 4, 2026
The Tonys were first and Cannes most recent to honor Streisand with the umbrella awards most appropriate for this once-in-a-lifetime artist.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 12, 2026
The equivalent of the UK's Olivier Awards, this year's Tonys ceremony will take place in New York on 7 June, hosted by singer Pink.
From BBC ● May 5, 2026
We can't go on living here, and the Tonys will be home just as Tim's leave's up, and they're sure to leave their Bits behind.
From A Crooked Mile by Oliver [pseud.] Onions
In 2019, Montoya realized he could earn more through Uber: up to $1,800 a week driving in Los Angeles’s tonier neighborhoods.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 21, 2026
Rodgers’s appearance at the Tonys seemed, to me, like a new resident acclimating to a new residence, getting cozy with its — forgive me — tonier perks.
From New York Times ● Jul. 24, 2023
Because of the lower property values, even the tonier areas of St. Bernard got less of their damages covered.
From Salon ● Dec. 13, 2022
As Brentwood got tonier, movie stars joined the ranks of the residents who regularly picked up groceries, had their shoes shined and mailed letters in the barn-shaped one-stop shopping complex.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 14, 2022
Entranced, Weller swan-dove headlong into the heart of Ferry’s unwritten sophisti-pop syllabus with airs that were tonier, goofier and made for extraordinarily easier listening than anything the Jam would’ve deigned to do.
From Washington Post ● Nov. 20, 2020
The borough of Westminster, home to some of London’s toniest neighborhoods, said in a 2023 report that it sought to collect payment on 13,423 tickets issued to United Arab Emirates vehicles between 2018 and 2022.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 1, 2026
The State Farm move affects some of the county’s toniest neighborhoods — adding another layer of expense and financial risk for homeowners in areas that were already costly and imperiled by wildfires.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 10, 2024
MIAMI—For nearly 2 years, bustling teams of archaeologists—totaling more than 120 researchers on some days—have excavated a sprawling waterfront lot here in one of this seaside city’s toniest neighborhoods.
From Science Magazine ● Apr. 10, 2023
He has described how his parents saved to send him to Winchester College, one of Britain’s toniest and most expensive boarding schools.
From Washington Times ● Oct. 24, 2022
Isabel hastened to make an Alliance with one of the oldest and toniest Families west of Bucyrus and north of Evansville.
From Knocking the Neighbors by George Ade
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