dowdy
Use Dowdy in a sentence
di adjective
1.
not stylish; drab; old-fashioned: Why do you always wear those dowdy old dresses?
2.
not neat or tidy; shabby.
noun
3.
a dowdy woman.
00:10
Dowdy
is always a great word to know.
So is interrobang. Does it mean:
| a printed punctuation mark (‽), available only in some typefaces, designed to combine the question mark (?) and the exclamation point (!), indicating a mixture of query and interjection, as after a rhetorical question. |
| a calculus or concretion found in the stomach or intestines of certain animals, esp. ruminants, formerly reputed to be an effective remedy for poison. |
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
Cite This Source
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Link To dowdy
Collins
World English Dictionary
dowdy (ˈdaʊdɪ) ![[Click for IPA pronunciation guide]](http://static.sfdict.com/dictstatic/g/d/dictionary_questionbutton_default.gif) | |
| —adj , -dier, -diest | |
| 1. | (esp of a woman's dress) drab, unflattering, and old-fashioned |
| —n , -dier, -diest, -dies | |
| 2. | a dowdy woman |
| [C14: dowd slut, of unknown origin] | |
| 'dowdily | |
| —adv | |
| 'dowdiness | |
| —n | |
| 'dowdyish | |
| —adj | |
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source
Etymonline
Word Origin & History
dowdy
1580s (n.), 1670s (adj.), probably dim. of doue "poorly dressed woman" (early 14c.), of uncertain origin. The modern use of dowd (n.) is most likely a back-formation from dowdy. "If plaine or homely, wee saie she is a doudie or a slut" [1581].
"You don't have to be dowdy to be a Christian." [Tammy Faye Bakker, "Newsweek," June 8, 1987]
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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Example sentences
After a decade or so of frenzied development, the region's once-dowdy urban landscapes have changed beyond recognition.
His low-res computer graphics struck some as dowdy and irrelevant, and so did his target market.
Underneath her rolls of fat and dowdy dresses beats the heart of a peevish grandame.
In its new marketing campaign, the footwear company is trying to move beyond the image of its dowdy clog original.
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