From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishgaudygau‧dy /ˈɡɔːdi $ ˈɡɒːdi/ adjective CCclothes, colours etc that are gaudy are too bright and look cheap – used to show disapproval gaudy jewelry► see thesaurus at colour —gaudily adverb —gaudiness noun [uncountable]
Examples from the Corpus
gaudy• I didn't like the decorations - they looked rather gaudy.• On the walls, pictures of Mecca and General Zia mingle with gaudy Alpine scenes.• The men who tended the garden were well aware that to modern eyes this planting scheme was gaudy and banal.• Another one put washing on to a line, gaudy bedclothes and sombre shirts.• The beautiful lion fish belongs to this gaudy category and is therefore much easier to avoid.• She smelled of cheap perfume and wore gaudy clothing and fake costume jewellery.• Yet nothing can quite make up for the gaudy excesses of the auto-da-fe.• Not only was it gaudy in appearance but the smell wafting from the kitchen was distinctly malodorous.• a gaudy neon sign• Within this area, several males - smaller and less gaudy than the females - establish much smaller territories.Origin gaudy (1400-1500) gaud “bright decorative object” ((14-19 centuries)), probably from Old French gaudir “to enjoy” 