Meaning & use
snazzily dressed
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Meanings
phrasefixed phraseinformalapproving
Wearing clothes that look very stylish, smart, and eye-catching.
Grammar: Used after a linking verb such as be or look, or before a noun with a hyphen: a snazzily dressed guest.
Patterns
- be snazzily dressed
- look snazzily dressed
- a snazzily dressed someone
She turned up snazzily dressed in a red velvet jacket.
Everyone at the opening night was snazzily dressed, so I felt a bit plain.
He looked snazzily dressed even though he had come straight from work.
phrasefixed phraseinformal
Worn or arranged in a showy, fashionable way, said of clothes themselves.
Grammar: Used before a noun to describe the clothes rather than the person: snazzily dressed windows, a snazzily dressed outfit.
Patterns
- snazzily dressed clothes
- a snazzily dressed outfit
The shop windows were snazzily dressed for the holiday season.
She wore a snazzily dressed outfit of silver boots and a sequined top.
Common combinations
- be snazzily dressed
- For the party, they were all snazzily dressed in bright colors.
- look snazzily dressed
- You look snazzily dressed today — is there a special occasion?
- a snazzily dressed man
- A snazzily dressed man held the door open for us.
- snazzily dressed for an occasion
- They got snazzily dressed for the awards dinner.
- smartly turned out
- The whole team was smartly turned out in new uniforms.
Synonyms and how they differ
- smartly dressed
- This is the more neutral, common choice; snazzily dressed adds a stronger idea of showy, trendy style.
- stylishly dressed
- Stylishly dressed focuses on good fashion sense, while snazzily dressed suggests something brighter and more eye-catching.
- dressed to kill
- This idiom is stronger and often humorous, suggesting you want to impress people; snazzily dressed is milder.
- dapper
- Dapper usually describes a man in neat, classic clothes, whereas snazzily dressed can apply to anyone and sounds more modern.
Opposites
Word family
- snazzy adjective
- Informal: stylish and attractive, especially in a bright, noticeable way.
- snazzily adverb
- In a stylish, showy way; used mainly in the phrase snazzily dressed.
- snazziness noun
- Rare: the quality of being stylish and eye-catching.
Commonly confused: snazzily dressed or snazzy? snazzily dressed or sleazy?
snazzily dressed vs snazzy
Snazzy is the adjective for the thing (a snazzy tie); snazzily is the adverb used with dressed. Say a snazzy suit, but snazzily dressed.
snazzily dressed vs sleazy
Sleazy means cheap and unpleasant, almost the opposite of snazzily dressed, though the two words sound somewhat similar.
Practice
Which sentence uses the phrase correctly?
Choose one answer.
'Snazzily dressed' keeps the adverb snazzily plus the adjective dressed after was. Option 1 uses the wrong form 'dress', option 2 uses the adjective 'snazzy' where an adverb is needed, and option 3 changes the fixed phrase into a continuous verb.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “snazzily dressed”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.