Garish

Part of speech: adjective

Pronunciation: /ˈɡɛəɹɪʃ/

Definitions

1. Excessively bright, showy, or colorful in a way that is unpleasant or in poor taste
2. Marked by an unpleasantly bright and exaggeratedly showy appearance that can be considered lacking in taste
3. Having a brightness or colorfulness that is too strong and detracts from elegance or subtlety

Etymology: "Garish" is one of those words whose origin nobody can pin down. The most cited candidate is an obsolete Middle English verb "gawren," meaning "to stare," which may have come from Old Norse roots meaning "to watch" or "rough fellow." The sense thus seems to have started with eyes and attention, a glaring gaze, before it came to describe things that glare. Its path from staring to shouting colors is a matter of informed guesswork rather than documented steps. The word seems to have drifted from the idea of something that catches the eye too forcefully toward something that offends it, which is the sense we use today: fabrics, paint, or decor that are too bright, too loud, or too showy.

Synonyms: tacky, loud, gaudy, flashy, vulgar

Antonyms: subdued, modest, elegant, tasteful, refined