spiffing

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English

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈspɪfɪŋ/
  • Audio (UK):(file)
  • Rhymes: -ɪfɪŋ

Adjective

spiffing (comparative more spiffing, superlative most spiffing)

  1. (British, colloquial, dated) Very good, excellent.
    We're having a picnic at the races — how spiffing!
  2. (British, colloquial, dated) Smart or appealing in dress or appearance.
    I say, that outfit is simply spiffing.
    • 1922 February, James Joyce, “[Episode 1]”, in Ulysses, Paris: Shakespeare and Company, , →OCLC:
      I have a lovely pair with a hair strip, grey. You'll look spiffing in them.
    • 2007, "Spiffing new image", Times Online, London, 18 May (retrieved 14 June 2007),
      Spiffing new image: ITV is developing an updated version of Spitting Image, with CGI graphics.

Usage notes

  • Typically associated with the British upper class; often used in imitation of upper-class speakers.

Synonyms

Derived terms

Verb

spiffing

  1. present participle and gerund of spiff

References

  • Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., 1989.