fancy-pantsadj.n.
/ˈfansɪˌpants/, U.S. /ˈfænsiˌpæn(t)s/ colloquial.
A. adj.
Fancy, fine, ornamental. Now usually: overly fancy; posh; snobbish, pretentious.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > emotion > pride > pretension to superiority > [adjective]
taunt?a1534
cocket1537
fastuous?1591
cobbing1599
whalebone1602
airy1606
fastigious1625
flatuous1630
high and mighty1633
vapouring1647
flatulent1658
hoity-toity1690
jackanapish1696
superior1711
penseful1788
uppish1789
pensy1790
stuck-up1812
glorified1821
toploftical1823
pretentious1832
sophomoric1837
highty-tighty1847
snippy1848
jumped-up1852
set-up1856
toplofty1859
cock-aloft1861
high-tone1864
high-toned1866
pretensivea1868
fancy-pants1870
hunched1870
snotty1870
head-in-air1880
uppity1880
jackanapsian1881
airified1882
sidey1898
posh1914
upstage1918
snooty1919
high-hatted1924
hincty1924
snot-nosed1941
posho1989
1870 Titusville (Pa.) Morning Herald 28 Oct. (advt.) Just opened! Still another lot of imported diagonal and basket coatings and fancy pants cassimers.
1939 Coshocton (Ohio) Tribune 19 Nov. 8/5 Bellamy borrowed the money to come west and borrowed some more to rent himself a Beverly Hills mansion complete with swimming pool and fancy-pants butler.
1964 M. Davis Watersiders 124 Blooming disgraceful. Some of these fancy-pants young stevedores are about as useful as tits on a bull.
2004 Heeb Winter 24/3 Compared to all the highfalutin, independently owned, fancy-pants pharmacies in Berkeley, Walgreen's ends up being pretty cheap.
B. n.
A dandy; a snob; a fastidious or pretentious person. Frequently as a form of address.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > fashionableness > [noun] > dandy
popa1500
miniona1513
prick-me-daintya1529
puppy?1544
velvet-coat1549
skipjack1554
coxcomb1567
musk cat?1567
physbuttocke1570
Adonis?1571
Adon1590
foretop1597
musk-cod1600
pretty fellow1600
sparkc1600
spangle-baby1602
flash1605
barber-monger1608
cocoloch1610
dapperling1611
fantastica1613
feather-cock1612
trig1612
jack-a-dandy?1617
gimcrack1623
satinist1639
powder puffa1653
fop1676
prig1676
foplinga1681
cockcomb1684
beau garçona1687
shape1688
duke1699
nab1699
smirk1699
beau1700
petty master1706
moppet1707
Tom Astoner1707
dapper1709
petit maître1711
buck1725
toupee1727
toupet1728
toupet-man1748
jemmy1753
jessamy1753
macaroni1764
majoc1770
monkeyrony1773
dandyc1780
elegant1780
muscadin1794
incroyable1797
beauty man1800
bang-up1811
natty1818
ruffian1818
exquisite1819
heavy swell1819
marvellous1819
bit of stuff1828
merveilleux1830
fat1832
squirt1844
dandyling1846
ineffable1859
guinea pig1860
Dundreary swell1862
masher1872
dude1877
mash1879
dudette1883
dand1886
heavy gunner1890
posh1890
nut1904
smoothie1929
fancy-pants1930
saga boy1941
fancy Dan1943
the mind > emotion > pride > pretension to superiority > [noun] > snobbery > snob
snob1911
high hat1923
fancy-pants1930
snoot1941
toffee-nose1943
1930 Coshocton (Ohio) Tribune 30 Dec. 8/3 ‘Dear Fancy Pants’ writes someone from down in Texas.
1934 P. Peters & G. Sklar Stevedore 31 All right, fancy pants.
1967 ‘M. Hunter’ Cambridgeshire Disaster viii. 52 Some puffed-up fancy pants..said something which made the barmaid laugh.
2004 Las Cruces (New Mexico) Sun-News (Nexis) 23 Dec. 20 a If you're not in the mood for being a fancypants and more in the mood to monkey around, the El Paso Zoo can occupy a few hours of your day.
This is a new entry (OED Third Edition, June 2006; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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adj.n.1870