tacky

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It is a little surprising that this currently fashionable term meaning 'tawdry, in poor taste' (describing such things as decor, jewellery, nightclubs, souvenirs, wallpaper, and taste in general) has nothing to do with the word meaning 'slightly wet or sticky', but is of American origin and is an extension of a noun tacky (or tackey) that was used disparagingly to describe a weak horse or a poor white person from the southern States. It is first recorded in the newer meaning in the 1880s in uses that sound modern, e.g.:

Two little cards (with his name printed on them in gilt. Tackey? Ugh)—I. M. Rittenhouse, 1883.

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adjective

Having the property of adhering: adhesive, gluey, gooey, gummy, sticky. See clean/dirty, keep/release.

tacky²

adjective

1. Showing signs of wear and tear or neglect: bedraggled, broken-down, decaying, decrepit, dilapidated, dingy, down-at-heel, faded, mangy, rundown, scrubby, scruffy, seedy, shabby, shoddy, sleazy, tattered, tatty, threadbare. Slang ratty. Idioms: all the worse for wear, gone topotseed, pastcurehope. See better/worse.
2. Lacking style and good taste: inelegant, tasteless, unbecoming. See style/good style/bad style.
3. Quite outmoded or unfashionable: dowdy, frumpish. See new/old.
4. Tastelessly showy: brummagem, chintzy, flashy, garish, gaudy, glaring, loud, meretricious, tawdry, tinsel. See style/good style/bad style.

adj

Definition: cheap, tasteless
Antonyms: classy, expensive, tasteful

For a list of words related to tacky, see:

• Unappealing, Shabby, Messy, Poor, or Clumsy

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See words rhyming with "tacky."

Dansk (Danish)
1.
adj. - tyk, klæbrig, tyktflydende

2.
adj. - billig, tarvelig, lurvet, prangende, udmajet

Nederlands (Dutch)
plakkerig, goedkoop (ordinair)

Français (French)
1.
adj. - collant, gluant, pas tout à fait sec (peinture)

2.
adj. - tocard (péj), rustaud (personne) (péj), de mauvais goût

Deutsch (German)
1.
adj. - klebrig

2.
adj. - geschmacklos, schäbig

Ελληνική (Greek)
adj. - κολλώδης, κακόγουστος, (καθομ.) ευτελής, παρακατιανός

Italiano (Italian)
appiccicaticcio, di cattivo gusto, volgare, trasandato

Português (Portuguese)
adj. - viscoso, pegajoso, deselegante

Русский (Russian)
Липкий, клейкий, невзрачный, жалкий, обветшалый, сварливый, скандалист

Español (Spanish)
1.
adj. - pegajoso

2.
adj. - vulgar, común, desastrado

Svenska (Swedish)
adj. - klibbig, smaklös, tarvlig, sjabbig, förfallen, prålig, grann, ruffig

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
1. 缺乏教养或风度的

2. 有些粘的, 俗气的, 缺乏教养或风度的

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
1.
adj. - 缺乏教養或風度的

2.
adj. - 有些粘的, 俗氣的, 缺乏教養或風度的

한국어 (Korean)
1.
adj. - 끈적한

2.
adj. - 초췌한, 볼품 없는, 촌스러운

日本語 (Japanese)
adj. - べたつく, 生乾きの, みすぼらしい, 安っぽい, 粘る, 下品な

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(صفه) لزج - دبق - مبتذل - حقير‏

עברית (Hebrew)
adj. - ‮מוזנח, מרושל, לח, דביק‬
adj. - ‮בטעם או בסגנון רע‬