English Explanatory Dictionary

rinky-dink

English dictionary entry

Meanings

noun
  1. A person who is contemptible or insignificant.
  2. An amateur or someone who is underqualified.
  3. Someone who operates unethically; specifically, a small-time conman or crook.
  4. Something that is not up to acceptable standards; something of low quality.
  5. A miscellaneous object or thing; a thingy.
  6. Deceptive or underhanded rigmarole; deception, trickery; (countable) often preceded by the: an instance of this; a deception, swindle, a trick.
  7. Alternative form of rinky-tink (“a tinkling, tinny style of music; honky-tonk”).
adj
  1. Of poor quality; amateurish, shoddy, small-time.
  2. Old-fashioned, tired; also, shabby, worn-out.
  3. Crooked, dishonest, underhanded.
  4. Alternative form of rinky-tink (“tinkling and tinny”).

Pronunciation

/ˈɹɪŋ.kɪ.dɪŋk/ /ˈɹɪŋkiˌdɪŋk/ En-us-rinky-dink.ogg

Word forms

rinky-dink rinky-dinks rinky-dinky

Etymology

Origin unknown; possibly a variant of rickety (“of an object: not strong or sturdy; of a person: feeble in the joints, tottering”), reduplicated with a change of the initial consonant. The noun is attested earlier than the adjective.

Synonyms

absolute zero also-ran chopped liver cipher crumb Joe Nobody little guy minnow nebbish nobody no one nothing nothingburger nonentity picayune pip-squeak pleb peon prole puny quidam rinky-dink shrimp wankstain zero zilch assbucket asswipe badling blatherskite bugger carrion cockstain custron dandiprat doink dirtbag douchebag fellow fritlag fuckbucket geek good-for-naught good-for-nothing gooey hoon lidderon losel loser louse maggot ne'er-do-well no-good no-mark nonce nought nowmun pelf pig dog pile of shit

Antonyms

baron big cheese big enchilada big gun big kahuna big man big name big noise big shot bigwig big wheel boss grand poobah head honcho heavy hitter heavyweight high muckamuck high muckety-muck king of all one surveys king of the castle king of the hill kingpin macher mayor muckamuck muckety muck mugwump numero uno panjandrum poobah rooster somebody top banana top boy top cat top dog top gun very important person VIP wheel a la mode/à la mode all the rage chic sassy cool dapper done elegant fashionable groovy happening hep hip in in fashion jaunty modish natty on fleek on trend

Related words

coinkydink dinky
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