as in fogey
a person with old-fashioned ideas
a fuddy-duddy who thought that anyone too young to vote shouldn't be out past 8:00 p.m.
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in stodgy
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of fuddy-duddy
Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 11 June 2025
Her characters were women whose roles often implied their own eventual replacements: teachers, fading former love interests, fuddy-duddy old-fashioned relics.
—Kathryn Vanarendonk, Vulture, 27 Sep. 2024
The good news is that for every fuddy-duddy like myself who can’t seem to get on board with crowdfunding kids’ lives, there are twice as many generous, kind-hearted individuals willing to give a little—or a lot—toward schools, sports, and charities.
—Melissa Willets, Parents, 3 Feb. 2024
Another group of screenwriters have mocked Ms. Lombardini online as a fuddy-duddy who hangs out at chain restaurants, the taunt being that no Hollywood person would be caught dead in one.
—John Koblin, New York Times, 28 Aug. 2023
And that’s part of what the Oscars, in their slightly fuddy-duddy way, can do: confer respectability on popular movies that represent groundbreaking achievement.
—Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 12 Mar. 2023
Adjective
The father, Buddy Smart (Bryan Cranston), is the clan’s second-rate crackpot visionary, a cockeyed optimist who dresses in fuddy-duddy jackets and never knows where the next paycheck is coming from.
—Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 11 June 2025
Her characters were women whose roles often implied their own eventual replacements: teachers, fading former love interests, fuddy-duddy old-fashioned relics.
—Kathryn Vanarendonk, Vulture, 27 Sep. 2024
The good news is that for every fuddy-duddy like myself who can’t seem to get on board with crowdfunding kids’ lives, there are twice as many generous, kind-hearted individuals willing to give a little—or a lot—toward schools, sports, and charities.
—Melissa Willets, Parents, 3 Feb. 2024
Another group of screenwriters have mocked Ms. Lombardini online as a fuddy-duddy who hangs out at chain restaurants, the taunt being that no Hollywood person would be caught dead in one.
—John Koblin, New York Times, 28 Aug. 2023
And that’s part of what the Oscars, in their slightly fuddy-duddy way, can do: confer respectability on popular movies that represent groundbreaking achievement.
—Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 12 Mar. 2023
Recent Examples of Synonyms for fuddy-duddy
Adjective
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The Ideapad 1i has kind of a quirky loadout, with a slightly stodgy Intel Celeron processor paired with a surprising 20GB of RAM.—
PC Magazine,
PC Magazine,
9 July 2025
-
Watch the pace of expansion to assess how real this transition is within the stodgy world of public transit.—
Richard Bishop,
Forbes.com,
8 July 2025
Noun
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To conservatives that believe DEI policies are racist, avoiding enforcement is the modern day literacy test.—
Jon McGowan,
Forbes.com,
28 Aug. 2025
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While many social media users said the new logo erased the brand's old country feel, some conservatives suggested that the rebrand was rooted in politics.—
Melina Khan,
USA Today,
28 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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Defense leaders have sat on their hands, refusing to acknowledge the need for dowdy, run-of-the-mill tankers.—
Craig Hooper,
Forbes.com,
26 Aug. 2025
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Jennifer Jason Leigh plays Catherine as hopelessly dowdy, bumbling, and awkward, even within the confines of her own drawing room.—
Elle Carroll,
Vulture,
11 Aug. 2025
Noun
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However, the seven-year veteran has put enough on tape.—
Bobby Krivitsky,
Forbes.com,
1 Sep. 2025
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Dumars got to work quickly, swinging for the fences with trades to bring in veteran guard Jordan Poole and to draft two players out of the lottery, Oklahoma guard Jeremiah Fears with the No. 7 selection and Maryland center Derik Queen with the No. 13 pick.—
Alex Kirschenbaum,
MSNBC Newsweek,
31 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Fuddy-duddy.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fuddy-duddy. Accessed 3 Sep. 2025.
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