bookish

book·ish

[book-ish]
adjective
1.
given or devoted to reading or study.
2.
more acquainted with books than with real life.
3.
of or pertaining to books; literary.
4.
stilted; pedantic.

Origin:
1560–70; book + -ish1

book·ish·ly, adverb
book·ish·ness, noun
non·book·ish, adjective
non·book·ish·ly, adverb
non·book·ish·ness, noun
o·ver·book·ish, adjective
o·ver·book·ish·ly, adverb
o·ver·book·ish·ness, noun
un·book·ish, adjective
un·book·ish·ly, adverb
un·book·ish·ness, noun


4. academic, scholastic.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
Cite This Source Link To bookish
00:10
Bookish is always a great word to know.
So is doohickey. Does it mean:
a gadget; dingus; thingumbob.
a children's mummer's parade, as on the Fourth of July, with prizes for the best costumes.
Collins
World English Dictionary
bookish (ˈbʊkɪʃ) [Click for IPA pronunciation guide]
 
adj
1.  fond of reading; studious
2.  consisting of or forming opinions or attitudes through reading rather than direct personal experience; academic: a bookish view of life
3.  of or relating to books: a bookish career in publishing
 
'bookishly
 
adv
 
'bookishness
 
n

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source
Etymonline
Word Origin & History

bookish
1560s, "literary," from book + ish. In sense of "overly studious" it is recorded from 1590s.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
Cite This Source
Copyright © 2013 Dictionary.com, LLC. All rights reserved.
  • Please Login or Sign Up to use the Recent Searches feature
FAVORITES
RECENT