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#179771 10/23/08 12:39 PM
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 1,819
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Pooh-Bah
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Pooh-Bah
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Joined: Jan 2001
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Can anyone provide me with a succint definition of naff, or naffness? I gather from context it means something like tacky or gaudy:

Quote:
The trend for understatement - from toning down the diamonds to trading down to plastic - is a reaction against huge, glitzy watches of the Jacob & Co ilk that a few years ago became popular with rappers such as P Diddy and Jay Z, and then found favour with footballers such as David Beckham. The status watch became cartoonishly obvious; simultaneously, watch theft became hot news, with Rolex owners from Juan Sebastian Veron to Steven Norris being targeted by robbers. The whiff of naffness was unmistakable: it was said that Liz Hurley referred to the gold Rolex bought for her by her then boyfriend Steve Bing as "a pimp's watch".

("What is it with men and their watches?" Jess Cartner-Morley, The Guardian, Thursday December 1 2005)

Alex Williams #179772 10/23/08 12:54 PM
Joined: Aug 2005
Posts: 3,290
Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Aug 2005
Posts: 3,290
naff

It means 'hideous, awful'. It's from a British cant known as Polari, originally used by gay Britons. For some of the contested etymologies, see Wikipedia (link).


Ceci n'est pas un seing.

Moderated by  Jackie 

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