urbane
Americanadjective
-
having the polish and suavity regarded as characteristic of sophisticated social life in major cities.
an urbane manner.
- Synonyms:
- cosmopolitan, suave
-
reflecting elegance, sophistication, etc., especially in expression.
He maintained an urbane tone in his letters.
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of urbane
1525–35; (< Middle French urbain ) < Latin urbānus ( see urban; for difference in stress and second syllable cf. human, humane)
Explanation
Urbane people are sophisticated, polished, cultured, refined. Spend enough time in an urban setting–-going to concerts and museums, spending time in crowds––and you'll be urbane too. Both urbane and urban derive from the Latin urbanus, "city," but while urban has connotations of gritty living and crime, urbane assumes that everyone sees the city from the roof deck of their penthouse apartment, drinking champagne and exchanging bon mots with friends. Add a Cole Porter soundtrack and the image is complete.
Vocabulary lists containing urbane
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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.
Urbane, well-spoken and intelligent, he is highly regarded by Singaporeans and consistently polls as one of the island's most popular politicians.
From BBC • Sep. 1, 2023
Sherwin-Williams’ previous gray-winning tones were Poised Taupe for 2017, a warm mid-tone gray with a tint of purple, and Urbane Bronze for 2021, a neutral dark gray.
From Fox News • Sep. 22, 2021
Sherwin-Williams named a warm dark brown called Urbane Bronze as its 2021 Color of the Year.
From Washington Post • Oct. 12, 2020
Eventually, an app called Urbane will allow users to interact with the data, while another app will complement 311 reporting and possibly help New Yorkers track how complaints are handled.
From New York Times • Nov. 6, 2016
Some lady in Philadelphia bought forty copies of Urbane.
From The Life and Letters of Elizabeth Prentiss by Prentiss, George L.
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.
