flashy

American

[flash-ee] / ˈflæʃ i /

adjective

flashier, flashiest

sparkling or brilliant, especially in a superficial way or for the moment.

a flashy performance.
ostentatiously or vulgarly smart; showy; gaudy.

flashy clothes.

flashy British

/ ˈflæʃɪ /

adjective

brilliant and dazzling, esp for a short time or in a superficial way
cheap and ostentatious

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Related Words

See gaudy ¹.

Other Word Forms

flashily adverb
flashiness noun
unflashy adjective

Etymology

Origin of flashy

First recorded in 1575–85; flash + -y ¹

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Maybe Roher believes this is what our increasingly gullible, truth-challenged citizenry needs from an explanatory doc: a flashy, kindhearted reminder that we’re the change we need to be.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 27, 2026

While Anthropic, OpenAI and other AI companies have grown their private-market valuations substantially in recent months, this isn’t the first time that closed-end funds offering access to flashy private companies have trended.

From MarketWatch • Mar. 25, 2026

He opts for a flashy shocker of a finale, which violates the play’s comic naturalism and seems faintly desperate.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 19, 2026

Downtown Munich is best-known for chic shops and flashy fast cars but right now its streets are bedecked with posters advertising next generation drones.

From BBC • Feb. 16, 2026

Sometimes plainclothes black policemen from the Special Branch did the rounding up in flashy cars.

From "Kaffir Boy: An Autobiography" by Mark Mathabane

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023