brassy
/'brɑ:si/
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
- Adjective:
- Resembling brass in color or sound: Having the yellowish color or the loud, harsh, metallic sound characteristic of brass.
- Bold and unrestrained; impudent: Behaving in a loud, confident, and often rude way that shows a lack of respect or shame.
- Tastelessly showy; gaudy: Excessively bright, flashy, or ornate in a way that is considered vulgar or lacking in good taste.
Examples of Usage
- Resembling brass:
- The old doorknob had a brassy sheen from years of polishing.
- Her laugh was loud and brassy, echoing through the hall.
- Bold and unrestrained:
- The reporter asked a series of brassy questions that made the politician uncomfortable.
- He had a brassy confidence that sometimes crossed the line into arrogance.
- Tastelessly showy:
- The hotel lobby was decorated in a brassy style with too much gold and glitter.
- She wore a brassy necklace that clashed with her elegant dress.
Advanced Usage
- "To have a brassy attitude": To display a bold, cheeky, or shameless manner.
- Despite being the new intern, she had a brassy attitude and wasn't afraid to voice her opinions in meetings.
Variants and Related Words
- Brass (noun): A yellow metal alloy of copper and zinc; also used figuratively for boldness or nerve (e.g., ).
- Brassily (adverb): In a brassy manner.
- The trumpet sounded brassily from the marching band.
- Brassiness (noun): The quality of being brassy.
- The brassiness of her demeanor put off some of the more conservative clients.
Synonyms
- Brazen: Bold and without shame.
- Bold: Confident and courageous, often to the point of being rude.
- Garish: Obtrusively bright and showy; lurid.
- Strident: Loud and harsh; grating.
Antonyms
- Modest: Unassuming in the estimation of one's abilities or achievements.
- Tasteful: Showing good aesthetic judgment or appropriate style.
- Subdued: Quiet and rather reflective or depressed; soft and muted in color or sound.
Related Idioms and Phrases
- (As) bold as brass: Behaving with too much confidence, in a way that is rude or shocking.
- He walked into the office, bold as brass, and sat at the boss's desk.
- Brass neck/nerve (noun phrase, related to 'brass'): Shameless boldness; impudence.
- He had the brass neck to complain about the service after not leaving a tip.
Adjective
- unrestrained by convention or propriety
- an audacious trick to pull
- a barefaced hypocrite
- the most bodacious display of tourism this side of Anaheim- Los Angeles Times
- bald-faced lies
- brazen arrogance
- the modern world with its quick material successes and insolent belief in the boundless possibilities of progress- Bertrand Russell
- tastelessly showy
- a flash car
- a flashy ring
- garish colors
- a gaudy costume
- loud sport shirts
- a meretricious yet stylish book
- tawdry ornaments
- resembling the sound of a brass instrument