different between tacky vs tackey

English

Etymology 1

tack +? -y

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?tæki/

• Rhymes: -æki

Adjective

tacky (comparative tackier, superlative tackiest)

1. Of a substance, slightly sticky.

   Hypernyms: see Thesaurus:adhesive

Translations

Etymology 2

Sense “in poor taste” from 1888, from earlier sense meaning shabby or seedy. Also see tackey (“neglected horse”), Southern US colloquialism from 1800s, later extended to people.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?tæki/

• Rhymes: -æki

Adjective

tacky (comparative tackier, superlative tackiest)

2. (colloquial) Of low quality.

3. (colloquial) In poor taste.

4. Gaudy or flashy.

   Synonyms: flashy, showy, garish

   • 1967, S. E. Hinton, The Outsiders

     Steve Randle was seventeen, tall and lean, with thick greasy hair he kept combed in complicated swirls. He was tacky, smart, and Soda's best buddy since grade school.

5. Shabby, dowdy in one's appearance or dress.

   Synonym: dowdy

Derived terms

• ticky-tacky

Translations

Noun

tacky (plural tackies)

1. Alternative form of tackey

Anagrams

• Tyack

English

Alternative forms

• tacky

Noun

tackey (plural tackeys)

1. (US, Southern US) A scrubby, neglected horse.
2. (US, Southern US) A person in a similar condition.

References

• McCarr, Ken (1978) The Kentucky Harness Horse?^[1]
• Simms, William Gilmore (1835) The Partisan, Harper, pages 115