deluxe

• de luxe

Borrowed from French de luxe (“of luxury”), from Latin luxus (“excess”).

• (US) IPA^(key): /dəˈlʌks/, /dɪˈlʌks/, /diˈlʌks/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ʌks

deluxe (comparative more deluxe or deluxer, superlative most deluxe or deluxest)

1. Very fine in quality or luxurious.

   The band released a deluxe version of their LP, containing bonus tracks and with a personal message by all the members in the sleeve.

   • 1925 August 20, “Daily Novelette: Two of a Kind”, in The Lindsay Daily Post, 29th year, number 194, Lindsay, Ont., page five, column 1:

     “I have here, sir,” he said, “one of the deluxest editions de luxe now in print. Observe the handsome tree calf binding, notice the gold gilt crinkle edges and stand aghast with admiration before the profuse and artistic illustrations.”

   • 1937, Howard Vincent O’Brien, “The Modern Touch”, in Notes for a Book about Mexico, Chicago, Ill., New York, N.Y.: Willett, Clark & Company, page 99:

     The Reforma is Mexico’s deluxest hotel—and it is about as Mexican as the Ziegfeld Follies.

   • 1950 July 20, “We Kaint Make No Five Spot out of a Plain Dollar Bill: But We Kin Kum So Close You Won't Never Know the Difference with Bargain City's Low Prices!”, in St. Louis Post-Dispatch, volume 102, number 308, St. Louis, Mo., page 8A:

     And fer the deluxest of ’em all, get our reg. $59.95 list 20-inch Reversible Window Fan, $39.99, sucks in cool air or blows out hot air.

   • 1951, Florence Crannell Means, “Meet the Grande Deluxe!”, in Hetty of the Grande Deluxe, Boston, Mass.: Houghton Mifflin Company; Cambridge, Mass.: The Riverside Press, page 13:

     And many a noble heart takes shelter under roofs no grander nor deluxer than this one.

   • 1951 February 9, The Kingston Daily Freeman, volume LXXX, number 96, Kingston, N.Y., page four:

     It is probably the most deluxest hospice in New York and was until recently the pied-a-tree of Clare Booth Luce and her consort, Chinaboy Henry, otherwise known as Fui Piu.

   • 1958 February 3, “Clipped Quips”, in Kilgore News Herald, 28th year, number 29, Kilgore, Tex., page 4:

     A tribe of North Carolina Indians routs the Ku Klux Klan. Carolina war party chant: “Nothing is deluxer than to chase a Ku Ku Kluxer in the morning.”

   • 1960 June 1, Amarillo Globe-Times, 37th year, number 73, Amarillo, Tex., page 30:

     There’s nothing deluxer than the kitchen equipment in this house.

   • 1967 April 5, J.J. Dorsey, “Dover Firm Develops New Car Top Vinyl”, in The Daily Reporter, volume 64, number 226, Dover, Oh. – New Philadelphia, Oh., page 3:

     The trend started with custom builders and their efforts in the game of one-upmanship for that “deluxer than thou” touch.

   • 1970, Entertainment World, page 30:

     Winging your way all Nudie’d up is the Deluxest Burrito of them all — swell if you don’t break a tooth on the sequins.

   • 1972, “Yosemite Rediscovered”, in Explorer’s Guide to the West, volume 3 (Southern Mountains), The H. M. Gousha Co., →LCCN, page 124:

     Deluxest Of Christmas Dinners / For a posh Christmas celebration, some families take in the famous Bracebridge Dinner pageant, which has been held at The Ahwahnee for four decades, still with the original cast and its descendants.

   • 1980, Andrew Klavan, Face of the Earth, New York, N.Y.: The Viking Press, →ISBN, page 41:

     “Guess you foiled me this time, good buddy. But now”—and here he turns from the mountains, his eyes dancing with that new energy, his lips in a sly smile—“now it’s time for my deluxest yarn. The greatest story ever told.”

   • 1981, David Littlejohn, Going to California, New York, N.Y.: Coward, McCann & Geoghegan, →ISBN, page 60:

     The Madame du Pompadour was everything the fag clerk said it was: the deluxest deluxe either one of them had ever stood inside.

   • 1989 March, Compute!, volume 11, number 3, issue 106, page 60:

     Deluxer than Ever / Deluxe Paint is getting another facelift from Electronic Arts (1820 Gateway Drive, San Mateo, California 94404, 415-571-7171).

   • 1996, Guy Vanderhaeghe, The Englishman’s Boy, Toronto, Ont.: McClelland & Stewart Inc., →ISBN, page 248:

     “You haven’t heard of Mrs. Kirkland’s?” She can scarcely believe my ignorance. “It’s the deluxest establishment in the city. Mrs. Kirkland says everybody dreams of making love to a movie star. I thought everybody had heard of Mrs. Kirkland’s.” “Sit down.” “Very deluxe,” she repeats, still standing. “We have a splendid piano player, you should come just to hear him. […]”

   • 2000 March 12, Michael Phillips, “The Playhouse in the Desert”, in Los Angeles Times, page 95:

     The Luxor’s “Blue Man Group” is de-luxer than its long-running editions in New York, Boston and Chicago.

   • 2005, Barry Yourgrau, NASTYbook, Joanna Cotler Books, →ISBN, page 101:

     “Safety reasons,” she snorts, dousing herself recklessly with borrowed floods of her mother’s deluxest perfume, thinking again of Mr. Loser’s obnoxious phone call.

   • 2007, Richard Kaempfer, “Frosty reception”, in $everance, Hoboken, N.J.: ENC Press, →ISBN, page 202:

     This condo was nicer than Richard’s fancy high-rise condo in Chicago and deluxer than their Deluxe Park View Suite at the Ritz.

deluxe (plural deluxes)

1. Something that is deluxe.
   • 1928 June 20, ““Mike” System Attachment by W. E. For House to Hear Talk or Sports; “Emergency” Set at $500, Special”, in Variety, volume XCI, number 10, New York, N.Y., page 20, column 1:

     Several of the deluxes are reported to have taken the $500 Victor set on the “emergency” angle.

   • 1948 June 15, Electrical Merchandising, volume 79, number 12, page 34:

     Appliance agent Jack Waters said, “The super deluxe models are selling better than the deluxe. The deluxes are outselling the specials and the specials are going faster than the standards.”

   • 1971 summer, Richard M. Langworth, “The New Nostalgia: The ‘Postwar Collectable’ Comes of Age”, in Automobile Quarterly: The Connoisseur’s Magazine of Motoring Today, Yesterday and Tomorrow, volume IX, number 4, page 431, column 3:

     The convertible came in only one basic mold, but the sleek fastback coupe and (from 1950 on) the “Holiday” hardtop could be had in “deluxe” trim as well; with their more lavish interiors, deluxes are the ones to look for.

   • 1980, Judith S. Stern, R. V. Denenberg, “The Nutrient Density Score: Measuring Vitamins and Minerals”, in How to Stay Slim and Healthy on the Fast Food Diet, Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall, Inc., →ISBN, page 19:

     For that reason, the doubts that are sometimes raised about the vitamin and mineral adequacy of fast food ought to give pause to anyone who regularly gratifies his yearning for triple-decker super deluxes.

   • 1991, Bill Jamison, Cheryl Alters Jamison, Best Places to Stay in Hawaii, 2nd edition, Boston, Mass.: Houghton Mifflin Company, →ISBN, page 99:

     The deluxes are in Marquesan-style bungalows with a separate bedroom and living room.

   • 2004, Jim Kaese, Paul Huddle, The Athletic-Minded Traveler: Where to Work Out and Stay When Fitness is a Priority: Over 500 Recommended Hotels and Fitness Venues, San Diego, Calif.: SoCal Publishing, →ISBN, page 366:

     While entry level rooms are small (225 square feet) and come with queen-size beds only, the king bed “deluxes” are larger.

   • 2016, Lindsay Brown, Jean-Bernard Carillet, Anna Kaminski, Papua New Guinea & Solomon Islands, Lonely Planet, →ISBN, page 71:

     The larger deluxes are comfortable, the apartments are ideal for families, airport transfers are free and so is wi-fi (hallelujah!).

Unadapted borrowing from English deluxe, from French de luxe.

• IPA^(key): /deˈluɡs/
• Rhymes: -uɡs

deluxe (invariable)

1. Synonym of de lujo.

According to Royal Spanish Academy (RAE) prescriptions, unadapted foreign words should be written in italics in a text printed in roman type, and vice versa, and in quotation marks in a manuscript text or when italics are not available. In practice, this RAE prescription is not always followed.