haughty

[ haw-tee ]

adjective

, haugh·ti·er, haugh·ti·est.

1. disdainfully proud; scornfully arrogant; snobbish; supercilious: a haughty salesclerk.

   haughty aristocrats;

   a haughty salesclerk.

   Synonyms: contemptuous, disdainful, lordly

   Antonyms: unassuming, unpretentious, humble

2. Archaic. lofty or noble; exalted.

haughty

/ ˈhɔːtɪ /

adjective

1. having or showing arrogance
2. archaic.
   noble or exalted

Derived Forms

• ˈhaughtily, adverb
• ˈhaughtiness, noun

Other Words From

• haugh·ti·ly adverb
• haugh·ti·ness noun
• o·ver·haugh·ti·ly adverb
• o·ver·haugh·ty adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of haughty¹

First recorded in 1520–30; obsolete haught (spelling variant of late Middle English haute, from Middle French, from Latin altus “high,” with h-, from Germanic; compare Old High German hok “high”) + -y ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of haughty¹

C16: from Old French haut, literally: lofty, from Latin altus high

Synonym Study

See proud.

Example Sentences

When the bankrupt Gawker shut its doors in 2016, it seemed unlikely that the site known for snarky opinions, celebrity gossip and haughty critiques would return.

From Digiday

Even curbside, the haughty look of this ride is intimidating.

From Washington Blade

While he puts a good deal of blame on the former president, who, he writes, “could come off as lecturing and haughty,” Boehner also recognizes that he was often not in the best negotiating position.

From Washington Post

Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall.

From The Daily Beast

But haughty talk may not dissuade Italians from following their former leader.

From The Daily Beast

But these are not times when we need to be uplifted and showered with haughty rhetoric.

From The Daily Beast

They have to rebut his lies, and they have to do it without sounding bitter or afraid or superior or haughty.

From The Daily Beast

And not the least haughty or intimidating or acerbic, but helpful, constructive, and conscientious.

From The Daily Beast

But at the instant I caught a sight of my counterfeit presentment in a shop window, and veiled my haughty crest.

From Project Gutenberg

A flash of surprise and pleasure lit the fine eyes of the haughty beauty perched up there on the palace wall.

From Project Gutenberg

Under the long lashes of low lids a pair of eyes black and insolent set off the haughty lines of her scarlet lips.

From Project Gutenberg

He passed them by, and haughty tenor and swaggering basso again took heart of grace.

From Project Gutenberg

This haughty Countess, by the way, has always had a great fascination for me, because she looks like a woman who "has a history."

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• cavalier
• contemptuous
• imperious
• indifferent
• snobbish
• snooty