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View synonyms for

tacky

1

[tak-ee]

adjective

tackier, tackiest 
  1. sticky to the touch; adhesive.



tacky

2

[tak-ee]

adjective

tackier, tackiest 
  1. not tasteful or fashionable; dowdy.

  2. shabby in appearance; shoddy.

    a tacky, jerry-built housing development.

  3. crass; cheaply vulgar; tasteless; crude.

  4. gaudy; flashy; showy.

tacky

1

/ ˈæɪ /

adjective

  1. shabby or shoddy

  2. ostentatious and vulgar

  3. (of a person) dowdy; seedy

“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

tacky

2

/ ˈæɪ /

adjective

  1. slightly sticky or adhesive

    the varnish was still tacky

“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
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Other Word Forms

  • tackiness noun
  • ˈٲ쾱Ա noun
  • ˈٲ쾱 adverb
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Word History and Origins

Origin of tacky1

First recorded in 1780–90; tack 1 + -y 1

Origin of tacky2

1880–85, apparently identical with earlier tack(e)y small horse, pony, poor farmer; of obscure origin
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Word History and Origins

Origin of tacky1

C19: from dialect tacky an inferior horse, of unknown origin

Origin of tacky2

C18: from tack 1 (in the sense: stickiness)
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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

On a spring afternoon in 2005, the members of OK Go dressed up in tacky suits, gathered in front of a video camera and awkwardly danced their way into history.

From

I read recently that the costume designer for the film “Conclave” hated the shade of red that cardinals wear today, that on screen it looked really tacky.

From

Inversely, if you’ve got money to spend and find secret fireplaces a little too tacky, good news: How does a fire moat sound?

From

You ought to write me even if I’m tacky and I don’t write.

From

To her, her longtime gig at the Razzle Dazzle isn’t just some tacky nudie show — it’s “the last descendant of Parisian Lido culture.”

From

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