garish

[ gair-ish, gar- ]

adjective

1. crudely or tastelessly colorful, showy, or elaborate, as clothes or decoration.

   Synonyms: tawdry, loud

2. excessively ornate or elaborate, as buildings or writings.
3. dressed in or ornamented with bright colors.
4. excessively bright; glaring.

garish

/ ˈɡɛərɪʃ /

adjective

1. gay or colourful in a crude or vulgar manner; gaudy

Derived Forms

• ˈgarishly, adverb
• ˈgarishness, noun

Other Words From

• garish·ly adverb
• garish·ness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of garish¹

1535–45; earlier gaurish, perhaps equivalent to obsolete gaure “to stare” ( Middle English gauren, from Old Norse ) + -ish ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of garish¹

C16: from earlier gaure to stare + -ish

Synonym Study

See gaudy ¹.

Example Sentences

On Halloween 2021 in Theddlethorpe, one of the local villages, several residents used their gardens to put up garish anti-nuclear dump scarecrows, inspired by an idea from pressure group the Guardians of the East Coast, which is campaigning against the disposal facility.

From BBC

Teetering on a pavement on Fifth Avenue with the 58-storey Trump Tower behind me, we were trying to perfect the angle for broadcast so the garish gold lettering spelling out “TRUMP TOWER” was visible to viewers, even if a giant lorry barrelled down the road as I started talking.

From BBC

The living room she sits in is filled with knick-knacks and family photos, amid a garish clash of of geometric beige wallpaper, turquoise walls and a patterned red carpet.

From BBC

As the film depicts with garish flair, the pugilistic, Bronx-born attorney — who first came to prominence prosecuting Julius and Ethel Rosenberg for espionage, then served as chief counsel to Sen. Joseph McCarthy during his anticommunist witch hunt — took Trump under his wing in the 1970s, handing the ambitious real-estate developer’s son a fiendish playbook for success.

From Los Angeles Times

The garish look and homogenized feel of the show directly informed the way future Disney Channel hits like “Wizards of Waverly Place” and “Sonny With a Chance” would appear.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• gaudy
• glittering
• ornate
• ostentatious
• showy
• vulgar