Jim-dandy
What it means
An excellent or especially pleasing person or thing.
Reach for it when offering colorful old-fashioned approval in casual speech
The folding workbench is a jim-dandy for repairs in a small apartment.
Words to choose between 6
| playful |
|
|---|---|
| everyday | |
| warm | |
| professional | |
| formal |
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playful
Fits when skill or quality is outstanding in an old-fashioned register
Careful Crackerjack is equally dated and may puzzle an international audience.
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playful
Fits when an unexpectedly excellent find deserves compact praise
Careful Gem can imply rarity or beauty rather than practical usefulness.
-
everyday
Fits when the choice has clearly succeeded
Careful Winner can sound competitive and may not fit praise for a person.
-
warm
Fits when an especially fine example inspires affection
Careful Beauty shifts attention toward appearance unless context makes the figurative sense clear.
-
professional
Fits when superior quality is evident within a comparison set
Careful Standout needs an implied field and lacks jim-dandy's folksy warmth.
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formal
excellent specimen
Fits when evaluation requires precise, restrained wording
Careful The phrase sounds clinical and removes all of the original's delighted personality.
Opposites 3
- dud
- failure
- mediocrity
Common phrases 3
-
a real jim-dandy
That hand drill is a real jim-dandy when electricity is unavailable.
-
little jim-dandy
The compact stove proved a little jim-dandy on the wet hike.
-
jim-dandy of a tool
They found a jim-dandy of a tool for lifting the old tiles.
Usage notes
Keep in mind
Jim-dandy is dated North American informal language and may sound deliberately quaint.
Definitions and examples are written for this site. How words are chosen Recording: Commander Keane, Australian accent, from Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0 Updated