dowdy

1 of 3

adjective

dowdier; dowdiest
1
: not neat or becoming in appearance : shabby
a dowdy old hat
2
a
: lacking smartness or taste
a dowdy room
b
: old-fashioned
a dowdy institution
dowdily adverb
dowdiness noun
dowdyish adjective

dowdy

2 of 3

noun (1)

plural dowdies
archaic
: a dowdy woman

dowdy

3 of 3

noun (2)

Examples of dowdy in a Sentence

Adjective She played a dowdy old woman in the film. the dowdy, beat-up furniture at the cheap motel
Recent Examples on the Web
Adjective
The roving camera seems to hunt Blanchett through her character’s London townhouse and hip industrial office space, both impeccably rendered in contrast with Stephen’s dowdy row house by production designer Neil Lamont and set decorator Pancho Chamorro. Alison Herman, Variety, 11 Oct. 2024 Shady events are a thing, too, as consumers are warned to beware of losing good money buying tickets for fake festivals, dowdy parties and counterfeit ticket scams. Susan Tompor, Detroit Free Press, 26 Sep. 2024 The refresh of what was a dowdy waterfront area into a high-cost residential section is called the Waterfront di Levante project. Michael Verdon, Robb Report, 24 Sep. 2024 Sara, a dowdy lonely tax inspector determined on retirement, has the chance to go out in glory, proving a Latina pop star is guilty of tax evasion. John Hopewell, Variety, 20 Sep. 2024 See all Example Sentences for dowdy 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'dowdy.' 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 (1)

diminutive of dowd dowdy, from Middle English doude

Noun (2)

origin unknown

First Known Use

Adjective

1676, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun (1)

1581, in the meaning defined above

Noun (2)

1936, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of dowdy was in 1581

Dictionary Entries Near dowdy

Cite this Entry

“Dowdy.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dowdy. Accessed 4 Nov. 2024.

Kids Definition

dowdy

adjective
ˈdau̇d-ē
dowdier; dowdiest
1
: not neatly or well dressed or cared for
2
: not stylish
dowdily
ˈdau̇d-ᵊl-ē
adverb
dowdiness
ˈdau̇d-ē-nəs
noun

More from Merriam-Webster on dowdy

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