Posh

How to spell posh

4 letters · 1 syllable

How to pronounce posh

What does posh mean?

1. adjectiveElegant, stylish, or associated with the wealthy upper classes.

Posh in a sentence

• They celebrated their anniversary at a posh restaurant in the city centre.

• The hotel was far more posh than the budget we had agreed.

Where does posh come from?

Language of origin: Unknown

The origin of 'posh' is genuinely uncertain, and lexicographers treat it with real caution. The most famous explanation, that it stands for 'Port Out, Starboard Home' (supposedly the desirable cabin sides on steamship voyages between Britain and India), is a charming story but has no documentary support and is now regarded as a folk etymology. The likelier source is British slang of the late 1800s, where 'posh' could mean money or a dandy, possibly connected to an older cant word 'push' for showy display or to Romani 'posh' meaning half (as in 'posh-houri', a halfpenny). The modern adjective meaning 'smart, stylish, upper-class' is first clearly recorded in the early 1900s and quickly became a defining piece of British informal English. Because no single clean line of descent can be proven, the safest verdict is that 'posh' grew out of late Victorian slang whose exact roots are lost.

How the word is built

• posh (a single root word with no prefix or suffix; origin uncertain)