barfly

noun

bar·​fly ˈbär-ˌflī How to pronounce barfly (audio)
: a person who spends much time in bars

Examples of barfly in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web The barfly comedy wasn’t the only show honored during Monday’s broadcast. Kelly Wynne, Peoplemag, 16 Jan. 2024 In the final scene, the one female regular at the Royal, a blowsy barfly well played by Barbara Lowing, is moving toward the bar as Hanna and Liv move decisively in the other direction. Sheri Linden, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 Sep. 2023 Church also shared his first memory of seeing Keith at the Fiddle & Steel Guitar Bar in downtown Nashville, an incident which involved Keith taking a bullying barfly by the collar and dragging him down a line of barstools, before depositing him at the end of the bar just as Church walks in. Jessica Nicholson, Billboard, 9 Nov. 2022 Roger Arnold, the divorced barfly and home chemist. Chicago Tribune, 13 Oct. 2022 Rose, a grudging slash of red lipstick on her unsmiling mouth as a concession to coquettishness, picks up a random barfly in a local pub and, staring into the middle distance, briskly masturbates him in a restroom. Jessica Kiang, Variety, 26 Jan. 2023 Jayme Hoskins has turned into a baseball barfly and let the free beers fly during recent Phillies' postseason games. Dan Gelston, ajc, 3 Nov. 2022 There was a former barfly who had fended off many a hangover here, arriving just before the kitchen’s 4 A.M. closing time. Hannah Goldfield, The New Yorker, 7 Oct. 2022 Principal roles are Tully, a womanizing singer-songwriter; Rachel, a scientist; Rachel’s friend Tammy; bartender Brick; resort manager Marley; older barfly J.D.; and Tammy’s insensitive fiancé Chadd. al, 10 June 2022

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

Word History

First Known Use

1896, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of barfly was in 1896

Dictionary Entries Near barfly

Cite this Entry

“Barfly.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/barfly. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

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