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Synonyms

windy

American  
[win-dee] / ˈwɪn di /

adjective

windier, windiest

  1. accompanied or characterized by wind.

    a windy day.

  2. exposed to or swept by the wind.

    a windy hill.

  3. consisting of or resembling wind.

    a windy tempest of activity.

  4. toward the wind; windward.

  5. unsubstantial or empty.

  6. of the nature of, characterized by, or given to prolonged, empty talk; voluble; verbose; bombastic.

  7. characterized by or causing flatulence.

  8. Chiefly Scot. boastful.

windy British  
/ ˈwɪndɪ /

adjective

  1. of, characterized by, resembling, or relating to wind; stormy

  2. swept by or open to powerful winds

  3. marked by or given to empty, prolonged, and often boastful speech; bombastic

    windy orations

  4. void of substance

  5. an informal word for flatulent

  6. slang afraid; frightened; nervous

"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

Other Word Forms

  • unwindy adjective
  • windily adverb
  • windiness noun

Etymology

Origin of windy

before 900; Middle English; Old English windig. See wind 1, -y 1

Vocabulary lists containing windy

Florida's B.E.S.T. Common Suffixes: -y

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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.

I always believed that would give us an edge, especially if it was a cold, windy and wet afternoon in Stoke!

From BBC • Mar. 27, 2026

It was raining and brutally windy, and I nearly slid down a hill with my suitcase.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 25, 2026

Authorities in Tenerife have activated emergency plans as Storm Therese brings wet, windy and wintry weather to the Canary Islands.

From BBC • Mar. 20, 2026

After a very windy Saturday, weather in the region is expected to remain gusty through Sunday.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 8, 2026

Mum and Aunt Alice were having a stroll round the windy garden.

From "Black Swan Green" by David Mitchell

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.