What does "fancy" mean?
The imagination.
Fancy
/ˈfæn.si/ adj, adv, name, noun, verb, slang
adj, adv, name, noun, verb, slang ·Top 500 ·Elementary level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: The imagination.
- Grammar: fancy is listed as adj, adv, name, noun, verb, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: fantasy, a bit much, abandoned, accept.
- Useful contrasts: austere appearance, bare ground, basic.
- Usage evidence: Hello! Fancy meeting you here! It's a small world, isn't it?
How to use "fancy"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "fancy" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "fancy" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "fancy" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "fancy" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "fancy" is acting as adj, adv, name, noun, verb, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "fantasy" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "fancy", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 The imagination.
"[…] But know that in the soul / Are many lesser faculties, that serve / Reason as chief; among these Fancy next / Her office holds […]"
- 2 imagination or fantasy; held by Coleridge to be more casual and superficial than true imagination wordnet
- 3 An image or representation of anything formed in the mind.
"How now, my lord! why do you keep alone, / Of sorriest fancies your companions making, / Using those thoughts which should indeed have died / With them they think on?"
- 4 something many people believe that is false wordnet
- 5 An opinion or notion formed without much reflection.
"When you have well viewed the Scenes and Devillish shapes of this Practicall Metamorphosis, and scan’d them in your serious thoughts, you will wonder at their audacious phant’sies, who seeme to hold Specificall deformities, or that any part can seeme unhandsome in their Eyes, which hath appeared good and beautifull unto their Maker […]"
Show 12 more definitions
- 6 a predisposition to like something wordnet
- 7 A whim.
"I had a fancy to learn to play the flute."
- 8 Love or amorous attachment.
"And they’ve taken a fancy to me, Aunt said. Kitto and the others. That means they like me."
- 9 The object of inclination or liking.
"For you, fair Hermia, look you arm yourself / To fit your fancies to your father’s will;"
- 10 Any sport or hobby pursued by a group.
"Trainspotting is the fancy of a special lot."
- 11 The enthusiasts of such a pursuit.
"He fell out of favor with the boxing fancy after the incident."
- 12 A diamond with a distinctive colour.
- 13 That which pleases or entertains the taste or caprice without much use or value.
"18th century, John Mortimer, The Whole Art of Husbandry; or, The Way of Managing and Improving Land, cited in Samuel Johnson, A Dictionary of the English Language, 1755, London-pride is a pretty fancy, and does well for borders."
- 14 A bite-sized sponge cake, with a layer of cream, covered in icing.
"a French fancy; a fondant fancy; cream fancies"
- 15 A sort of love song or light impromptu ballad. obsolete
"[He] ſung thoſe tunes to the ouer-ſchutcht huſwiues, that he heard the Car-men whiſtle, and ſware they were his fancies or his good-nights, […]"
- 16 In the game of jacks, a style of play involving additional actions (contrasted with plainsies).
"When you have mastered plainsies, the regular jack game, and have learned all the rules, you will be ready to use this part of the book. A fancy is a variation of plainsies which usually requires more skill than plainsies does."
- 17 A colored neckerchief worn at prizefights to show support for a contender. in-compounds, obsolete, slang
"the yellow fancy; the cream fancy; the blood-red fancy"
Verb
- 1 To appreciate without jealousy or greed. formal
"I fancy your new car, but I like my old one just fine."
- 2 imagine; conceive of; see in one's mind wordnet
- 3 Would like; have a desire for. British
"I fancy a burger tonight for dinner."
- 4 have a fancy or particular liking or desire for wordnet
- 5 To be sexually, aesthetically or romantically attracted to. British, informal
"I fancy that girl over there."
Show 4 more definitions
- 6 To imagine, suppose. dated
"[dated] I fancy you'll want something to drink after your long journey."
- 7 To form a conception of; to portray in the mind.
"he whom I fancy, but can ne'er express"
- 8 To have a fancy for; to like; to be pleased with, particularly on account of external appearance or manners.
"We fancy not the cardinal."
- 9 To breed (animals) as a hobby. transitive
"I would recommend this little book very highly to anyone who fancies pigeons, novices and veterans alike."
Adjective
- 1 Decorative, or featuring decorations, especially intricate or diverse ones.
"This is a fancy shawl."
- 2 Of a superior grade.
"This box contains bottles of the fancy grade of jelly."
- 3 Executed with skill.
"He initiated the game-winning play with a fancy deked saucer pass to the winger."
- 4 Unnecessarily complicated. colloquial
"I'm not keen on him and his fancy ideas."
- 5 Extravagant; above real value. obsolete
"This anxiety never degenerated into a monomania, like that which led his [Frederick the Great's] father to pay fancy prices for giants."
Adjective
- 1 not plain; decorative or ornamented wordnet
Adverb
- 1 In a fancy manner; fancily. nonstandard, not-comparable
"I igonored it, hurdling her navel, riding her torso and taking both her breasts in my hands and mashing them none too fancy."
Proper Noun
- 1 A surname from Old English
Synonyms
All synonymsAntonyms
Example
"Hello! Fancy meeting you here! It's a small world, isn't it?"
Common questions
What is a synonym for "fancy"?
Common synonyms include: fantasy, a bit much, abandoned, accept, account as, adept.
How do you use "fancy" in a sentence?
Hello! Fancy meeting you here! It's a small world, isn't it?
How do you pronounce "fancy"?
Pronounced /ˈfæn.si/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
From Middle English fansy, fantsy, a contraction of fantasy, fantasye, fantasie, from Old French fantasie, from Medieval Latin fantasia, from Late Latin phantasia (“an idea, notion, fancy, phantasm”), from Ancient Greek φαντασία (phantasía), from φαντάζω (phantázō, “to render visible”), from φαντός (phantós, “visible”), from φαίνω (phaínō, “to make visible”); from the same root as φάος (pháos, “light”); ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *bʰh₂nyéti, from the root *bʰeh₂- (“to shine”). Doublet of fantasia, fantasy, phantasia, and phantasy.
Etymology 2
From Middle English fancien, fantasien, fantesien, from Old French fantasier, from the noun (see above)).
Etymology 3
From Old English.