Meaning & use

garish

adjective·Academic

Unpleasantly bright, colorful, or showy in a way that seems tasteless or excessive.

See it in a sentence

The hotel lobby was decorated in garish neon colors that clashed with the marble floors.

She avoided garish makeup and preferred a simple, natural look for work.

A note on using this word

Garish almost always carries a negative judgment about taste; it is rarely used as neutral praise for bright colors.

Words with a similar meaning

gaudyflashy

Choose a synonym to suit the sentence. Meanings can overlap without being identical.

Words with an opposite meaning

subduedtasteful

Make it your own

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