airy


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Related to airy: George Biddell Airy

airy

breezy; jaunty; sprightly; lively: airy songs; unsubstantial; unreal; imaginary; fanciful; lofty
Not to be confused with:
aerie – the nest of a bird of prey, a house or fortress located high on a hill or mountain
Abused, Confused, & Misused Words by Mary Embree Copyright © 2007, 2013 by Mary Embree

air·y

 (âr′ē)
adj. air·i·er, air·i·est
1.
a. Open to or allowing in air; breezy or drafty: "the airy bungalows of the island's top officials" (Amitav Ghosh).
b. Extensive in area or height; spacious: "An open floor plan made bright and airy by soaring ceilings" (Country Living).
2. High in the air; lofty: airy skyscrapers.
3. Performed in the air; aerial.
4. Resembling or evocative of air, especially:
a. Having little or no substance; thin or immaterial: an airy apparition.
b. Light or delicate: an airy dress.
5. Speculative, impractical, or vacuous: airy notions of human perfectibility.
6. Haughty or affected: dismissed us with an airy wave of the hand.
7. Chiefly Irish Light-hearted; merry.
8. Archaic Of, relating to, or having the constitution of air.

air′i·ly adv.
air′i·ness n.
Synonyms: airy, filmy, gauzy, gossamer, sheer2
These adjectives mean so light and insubstantial as to resemble air or a thin film: airy curtains blowing at the window; the filmy wings of a moth; gauzy clouds in the sky; a gown of gossamer fabric; sheer silk stockings.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

airy

(ˈɛərɪ)
adj, airier or airiest
1. abounding in fresh air
2. spacious or uncluttered
3. nonchalant; superficial
4. visionary; fanciful: airy promises; airy plans.
5. of or relating to air
6. weightless and insubstantial: an airy gossamer.
7. light and graceful in movement
8. having no material substance: airy spirits.
9. high up in the air; lofty
10. performed in the air; aerial

Airy

(ˈɛərɪ)
n
(Biography) Sir George Biddell. 1801–92, British astronomer, noted for his estimate of the earth's density from gravity measurements in mines; astronomer royal (1835–81)
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

air•y

(ˈɛər i)

adj. air•i•er, air•i•est.
1. open to a free current of fresh air: airy rooms.
2. immaterial: airy phantoms.
3. thin: airy garments.
4. light in manner; sprightly; lively: airy songs.
5. light in movement; graceful: an airy step.
6. performed in the air; aerial.
7. lofty; high in the air.
8. snobbishly affected; haughty: a model striking airy poses.
[1350–1400]
air′i•ly, adv.
air′i•ness, n.
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Adj.1.airy - open to or abounding in fresh airairy - open to or abounding in fresh air; "airy rooms"
ventilated - exposed to air; "a well ventilated room"
2.airy - not practical or realizable; speculative; "airy theories about socioeconomic improvement"; "visionary schemes for getting rich"
utopian - characterized by or aspiring to impracticable perfection; "the dim utopian future"; "utopian idealists"; "recognized the utopian nature of his hopes"
3.airy - having little or no perceptible weightairy - having little or no perceptible weight; so light as to resemble air; "airy gauze curtains"
light - of comparatively little physical weight or density; "a light load"; "magnesium is a light metal--having a specific gravity of 1.74 at 20 degrees C"
4.airy - characterized by lightness and insubstantialityairy - characterized by lightness and insubstantiality; as impalpable or intangible as air; "figures light and aeriform come unlooked for and melt away"- Thomas Carlyle; "aerial fancies"; "an airy apparition"; "physical rather than ethereal forms"
insubstantial, unsubstantial, unreal - lacking material form or substance; unreal; "as insubstantial as a dream"; "an insubstantial mirage on the horizon"
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.

airy

adjective
1. well-ventilated, open, light, fresh, spacious, windy, lofty, breezy, uncluttered, draughty, gusty, blowy The bathroom is light and airy.
well-ventilated close, heavy, stifling, oppressive, stale, suffocating, stuffy, airless, muggy, unventilated
2. light-hearted, light, happy, gay, lively, cheerful, animated, merry, upbeat (informal), buoyant, graceful, cheery, genial, high-spirited, jaunty, chirpy (informal), sprightly, debonair, nonchalant, blithe, frolicsome He sailed past, giving them an airy wave of the hand.
light-hearted sad, miserable, gloomy, dismal, melancholy, glum, morose, cheerless
3. insubstantial, imaginary, visionary, flimsy, fanciful, ethereal, immaterial, illusory, wispy, weightless, incorporeal, vaporous 'launch aid', an airy euphemism for more state handouts
insubstantial real, material, substantial, concrete, realistic, tangible, corporeal
Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

airy

adjective
1. Of or relating to air:
2. Imposingly high:
3. Exposed to or characterized by the presence of freely circulating air or wind:
4. So light and insubstantial as to resemble air or a thin film:
5. Displaying light-hearted nonchalance:
Informal: corky.
The American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Translations
مَرِح، رَشِيق، رَقَيقمُهَوَّى، مَلِيء بِالهَواء الطَّلْق
lehkomyslnývzdušný
luftigmunterubekymret
jó levegõjû
léttúîugur, kærulausloftgóîur, rúmgóîur

airy

[ˈɛərɪ] ADJ (airier (compar) (airiest (superl)))
1. [room, building] (= spacious) → espacioso, amplio; (= well ventilated) → bien ventilado
2. [fabric, clothing] (= lightweight) → ligero; (= unsubstantial) → etéreo
3. (= careless, light) [remark] → hecho a la ligera; [gesture, wave] → despreocupado
4. (= empty) [idea, generalization] → ligero
he's always full of airy promisessiempre hace promesas a la ligera
Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

airy

[ˈɛəri] adj
(= spacious) [building, room, church] → clair(e) et spacieux/euse
(= casual) [manners, wave] → désinvolte
Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

airy

adj (+er)
roomluftig; to have an airy feel (to it)luftig wirken
(= casual) manner, gesturelässig, nonchalant; (= vague) promisevage; theoryversponnen; (= superior, flippant)blasiert, erhaben
(liter: = immaterial) phantomkörperlos
Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

airy

[ˈɛərɪ] adj (-ier (comp) (-iest (superl))) (place) → arieggiato/a; (room) → arioso/a; (remark) → superficiale; (manner) → spensierato/a, noncurante
Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995

air

() noun
1. the mixture of gases we breathe; the atmosphere. Mountain air is pure.
2. the space above the ground; the sky. Birds fly through the air.
3. appearance. The house had an air of neglect.
4. a tune. She played a simple air on the piano.
verb
1. to expose to the air in order to dry or make more fresh etc. to air linen.
2. to make known. He loved to air his opinions.
ˈairbag noun
a safety bag in a car that protects the driver or a passenger in an accident.
ˈairily adverb
in a light-hearted manner. She airily dismissed all objections.
ˈairiness noun
ˈairing noun
a short walk etc in the open air. She took the baby for an airing.
ˈairless adjective
1. (of weather) still and windless. It was a hot, airless night.
2. (of a room etc) stuffy and without fresh air.
ˈairy adjective
1. with plenty of (fresh) air. an airy room.
2. light-hearted and not serious. an airy disregard for authority.
ˈairborne adjective
in the air or flying. We were airborne five minutes after boarding the plane; airborne germs.
ˌair-conˈditioned adjective
having air-conditioning. an air-conditioned building.
ˌair-conˈditioner noun
an apparatus providing air-conditioning.
ˌair-conˈditioning noun
a method of providing a room, building etc with air of a controlled temperature and humidity.
ˈaircraftplural ˈaircraft noun
any of several types of machine for flying in the air. Enemy aircraft have been sighted.
aircraft carrier
a ship which carries aircraft and which aircraft can use for landing and taking off.
ˈairfield noun
an area of ground (with buildings etc) where (usually military) aircraft are kept and from which they fly.
air force
the part of the armed services which uses aircraft. the army, navy and air force.
ˈair-gun noun
a gun that is worked by air under pressure.
air hostess
a young woman who looks after passengers in an aircraft.
air letter
a letter sent by airmail.
ˈairlift noun
an operation to move cargo or people, carried out by air.
ˈairline noun
(a company that owns) a regular air transport service. Which airline are you travelling by?
ˈairliner noun
a (usually large) aircraft for carrying passengers.
ˈair-lock noun
a bubble in a pipe which prevents liquid from flowing along it.
ˈairmail noun
a system of carrying mail by air. Send this parcel by airmail; (also adjective) an airmail letter.
ˈairman noun
a member of an air force.
ˈair pollution noun
Air pollution is caused by smoke, toxic gases etc.
ˈairplane noun
(American) an aeroplane.
ˈairport noun
a place where passenger aircraft arrive and depart, with buildings for customs, waiting-rooms etc.
ˈair-pump noun
a pump for forcing air in or out of something.
ˈair-raid noun
an attack by aircraft.
ˈairship noun
an aircraft that is lighter than air and can be steered etc.
ˈairtight adjective
(of a container etc) into or through which air cannot pass. an airtight seal on a bottle.
ˈairway noun
a regular course followed by aircraft.
on the air
broadcasting (regularly) on radio or television.
put on airs / give oneself airs
to behave as if one is better or more important than others. She gives herself such airs that everyone dislikes her.
Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary © 2006-2013 K Dictionaries Ltd.
References in classic literature ?
There was accommodation for many horses and carriages; but I need only describe the stable into which I was taken; this was very roomy, with four good stalls; a large swinging window opened into the yard, which made it pleasant and airy.
The airy figure of the child paused, hovering over the house at which I had left my traveling-carriage in the evening.
Why, he said, we think that you are lazy, and mean to cheat us out of a whole chapter which is a very important part of the story; and you fancy that we shall not notice your airy way of proceeding; as if it were self-evident to everybody, that in the matter of women and children `friends have all things in common.'
It is this ray which propels the inherent or reflected light of the planet off into space, and when confined gives to the Martian craft their airy buoyancy.
It was idle, however, to imagine that an airy guest from Monument Mountain, Bald Summit, and old Graylock, shaggy with primeval forests, could see anything to admire in my poor little hillside, with its growth of frail and insect-eaten locust trees.
At the same time he felt that above his face, above the very middle of it, some strange airy structure was being erected out of slender needles or splinters, to the sound of this whispered music.
Indeed, it is less than nothing, and I have seen, when the great soul of the world turned over with a heavy sigh, a perfectly new, extra-stout foresail vanish like a bit of some airy stuff much lighter than gossamer.
But I have been able to dwell in their charming out-land or no-land with the shepherds and shepherdesses and nymphs, satyrs, and fauns, of Tasso and Guarini, and I take the finest pleasure in their company, their Dresden china loves and sorrows, their airy raptures, their painless throes, their polite anguish, their tears not the least salt, but flowing as sweet as the purling streams of their enamelled meadows.
Mannering's study, although that room was the lightest and most airy in the house.
And thou, much plumper dame, whom no airy forms nor phantoms of imagination cloathe; whom the well-seasoned beef, and pudding richly stained with plums, delight: thee I call: of whom in a treckschuyte, in some Dutch canal, the fat ufrow gelt, impregnated by a jolly merchant of Amsterdam, was delivered: in Grub-street school didst thou suck in the elements of thy erudition.
'The pots I took off airy railings, and the milk-can was standing by itself outside a public-house.
Hither, hither, from thy home, Airy sprite, I bid thee come!