What does dowdy mean?
Word: Dowdy
Part of Speech: Adjective
Meaning: Dowdy means not stylish or attractive, and looking dull and out of date. It is usually said of clothes, rooms or buildings.
Synonyms: frumpy, unfashionable
Antonyms: smart
How do you spell dowdy?
Syllables: dow - dy
Tricky part: The first vowel sound is spelt ow, as in town and crown, not ou as in cloud and loud.
Watch out for: doudy, dowddy
Memory tip: Picture a dowdy brown owl wrapped in a faded old shawl: the owl lends the word its ow.
Dowdy in a sentence
Example 1: After ten years, the cafe's dowdy brown walls were finally painted a sunny yellow.
Example 2: Sana thought her raincoat looked dowdy, but it kept her perfectly dry all week.
Example 3: The hotel had a dowdy lobby but the friendliest staff in town.
Fun Fact
Fashion writers often set dowdy against chic, a word English borrowed from French to describe clothes that are stylish and elegant.
Practise the CREST Way
Word Connection
Choose the antonym of the word dowdy as used in the sentence:
The old waiting room looked dowdy, with faded curtains and worn brown chairs.
a) shabby
b) drab
c) dreary
d) stylish
Show answer
d) stylish. Drab, shabby and dreary all describe the same tired look; only stylish is its opposite.
Spell-o-Spell
Three words in the list are spelt correctly and one is misspelt. Choose the meaning of the misspelt word.
1. tailored 2. fashonable 3. dowdy 4. elegant
a) popular or in style at a particular time
b) graceful and attractive in appearance
c) made to fit a particular person's body closely
d) lacking style, so that it looks drab and out of date
Show answer
a) popular or in style at a particular time. Fashionable keeps the i of fashion before the able; the other three words are spelt correctly.
Word Cookie
Find the misspelt word in the sentence:
For the school play, Sana had to wear a dowdie tweed jacket with patched elbows, which made the whole audience laugh as soon as she walked on.
a) tweed
b) audience
c) dowdie
d) patched
Show answer
c) dowdie. The word ends in a plain y, just like tidy and muddy.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. Which of these would a fashion magazine most likely call dowdy?
a) a silk scarf from a famous designer
b) a sharp new jacket in a bright red
c) a pair of trainers in this year's style
d) a shapeless brown cardigan worn for years
Show answer
d) a shapeless brown cardigan worn for years
2. Sana's aunt called the sofa dowdy, so Sana expected it to look ____.
a) worn and old-fashioned
b) too small for the room
c) brand new and costly
d) bright and very modern
Show answer
a) worn and old-fashioned
