honky-tonk

hon·ky-tonk

H0264700 (hông′kē-tôngk′, hŏng′kē-tŏngk′)n. A cheap, noisy bar or dance hall.adj.1. Of or relating to such a bar or dance hall; tawdry: a honky-tonk district; honky-tonk entertainers.2. Of, relating to, or being a type of ragtime characteristically played on a tinny-sounding piano or in a honky-tonk.intr.v. hon·ky-tonked, hon·ky-tonk·ing, hon·ky-tonks To visit cheap, noisy bars or dance halls.

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[Perhaps from honk.]

honky-tonk

(ˈhɒŋkɪˌtɒŋk) n1. slang a. a cheap disreputable nightclub, bar, etcb. (as modifier): a honky-tonk district. 2. (Jazz) a style of ragtime piano-playing, esp on a tinny-sounding piano3. (Music, other) a type of country music, usually performed by a small band with electric and steel guitars4. (Music, other) (as modifier): honky-tonk music. [C19: rhyming compound based on honk]

honk•y-tonk

(ˈhɒŋ kiˌtɒŋk, ˈhɔŋ kiˌtɔŋk)

n., adj., v. -tonked, -tonk•ing. n. 1. a cheap, noisy, garish nightclub or dance hall. adj. 2. of or characteristic of a honky-tonk. 3. characterized by honky-tonks: the honky-tonk part of town. 4. of or pertaining to ragtime music played on a tinny-sounding upright piano. v.i. 5. to visit honky-tonks. Also, honk′y-tonk`y.[1890–95, orig. uncertain]

honky-tonk

- May come from the New England dialect word honk, "to idle about," and is a rhyming duplication.See also related terms for idleness.

Thesaurus

Noun

1.

honky-tonk - a cheap drinking and dancing establishmentbarrelhousebar, barroom, ginmill, saloon, taproom - a room or establishment where alcoholic drinks are served over a counter; "he drowned his sorrows in whiskey at the bar"

honky-tonk

nounSlang. A disreputable or run-down bar or restaurant:Slang: dive, joint.

Translations