dandy

1 of 2

noun

dan·​dy ˈdan-dē How to pronounce dandy (audio)
plural dandies
1
: a man who gives exaggerated attention to personal appearance
2
: something excellent in its class
a dandy of a game
dandyish adjective
dandyishly adverb

dandy

2 of 2

adjective

dandier; dandiest
1
: of, relating to, or suggestive of a man who gives exaggerated attention to personal appearance : foppish
2
: very good : first-rate
a dandy place to stay
I have a couple of friends … who think a recession is a dandy time to try to discover better and cheaper ways to do things.Thomas Friedman

Examples of dandy in a Sentence

Noun That was a dandy of a game. that dandy was willing to spend all day and hundreds of dollars just to get the perfect pair of shoes Adjective We thought something was wrong, but he said everything was just fine and dandy. that's a dandy new racing bike
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
Regular-season finale with Regis Jesuit could be a dandy. Matt Schubert, The Denver Post, 14 Oct. 2024 Fabrice Morvan and Rob Pilatus were two Munich club kids, Black European dandies scoring excellent post-hip-hop MTV bubblegum bangers, dancing like acrobats and dressing like Cher. Rob Sheffield, Rolling Stone, 12 Oct. 2024
Adjective
Williams decided to reinterpret a historic bed trunk from the archives in his signature, dandy style. Rachel Cormack, Robb Report, 23 Sep. 2024 His menswear offerings lean on the dandy side with such vintage finds as three-piece suits, double-breasted pinstripe suits, bird’s eye vest and other items. Rosemary Feitelberg, WWD, 6 Aug. 2024 See all Example Sentences for dandy 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'dandy.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun and Adjective

probably short for jack-a-dandy, from jack entry 1 + a (of) + dandy (origin unknown)

First Known Use

Noun

circa 1780, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adjective

1792, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of dandy was circa 1780

Dictionary Entries Near dandy

Cite this Entry

“Dandy.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dandy. Accessed 31 Oct. 2024.

Kids Definition

dandy

1 of 2 noun
dan·​dy ˈdan-dē How to pronounce dandy (audio)
plural dandies
1
: a man who is too interested in his clothing and personal appearance
2
: a very good example of something
dandyish adjective

dandy

2 of 2 adjective
dandier; dandiest
: very good : splendid, excellent

More from Merriam-Webster on dandy

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