ISEE/SSAT Vocabulary BuilderWordsTtawdry
ISEE/SSAThard
tawdry
Meaning: cheap and showy in appearance or quality
tawdry in a sentence
How tawdry is used in real sentences:
The booth displayed tawdry jewelry beneath glaring lights.
The hotel lobby was crowded with tawdry statues painted gold.
“When the players returned, he removed a tawdry gold scarf that flashed under the lights and invited Elise to conduct eight measures.”
— from the passage The Unfinished Finale
“For decades, a dye company had masked its pipes behind tawdry signs depicting silver fish and impossibly blue water.”
— from the passage The Ninth Spring
Synonyms for tawdry
Other words for tawdry — gaudy, garish and tacky — carry the same meaning.
- gaudy
- garish
- tacky
Antonyms of tawdry
Words that mean the opposite of tawdry:
- tasteful
- elegant
- refined
Where it comes from
Shortened from 'Saint Audrey's lace,' a name for cheap finery.
Memory hook
TAWDRY sounds like 'torn jewelry': flashy decoration that looks cheap.