Link Centre Dictionary

uppity

up·pity

UK/ˈʌpəti/ US/ˈʌpʌti/ uncommon

adjective

1.

presumptuously arrogant

  • “had a witty but overweening manner”
  • “no idea how overweening he would be” S.V.Benet
  • “getting a little uppity and needed to be slapped down” NY Times
Synonyms
Similar

Origin

From earlier uppedy, equivalent to up + -ed + -y; compare blackity, biggity, and hippity (and possibly also persnickety, pernickety). First attested around 1880 in Uncle Remus by Joel Chandler Harris to describe Jack Sparrer (Jack Sparrow), who tattled on Br'er Rabbit (see quotations below). Compare uppish.

Phrases

  • know one's place

Related words

Word family

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.