Haughty

Pronunciation

• Rhymes: -ɔːti
• cot-caught Homophones: hottie

Origin

From earlier hauty, haultic, with spelling change in imitation of naughty and high, from Middle English hautein, hautain (with -ein, -ain becoming -y through the form hautenesse standing for *hauteinnesse; see haughtiness), from haute ("self-important"), from Old French haut, hault ("high, lofty"), from Frankish *hauh, hōh ("high, lofty, proud") and Latin altus ("high, deep"). More at high, old.

Full definition of haughty

Adjective

1. Conveying in demeanour the assumption of superiority; disdainful, supercilious.
• 1922, w, “Piracy”: A Romantic Chronicle of These Days Chapter 3/1/1, How meek and shrunken did that haughty Tarmac become as it slunk by the wide circle of asphalt of the yellow sort, that was loosely strewn before the great iron gates of Lady Hall as a forerunner of the consideration that awaited the guests of Rupert, Earl of Kare, ....

Synonyms