As for
chichi, I'm not at all sure it should be changed from common to rare. In fact, the main reason I'm considering that maybe it should be rare is that it's often written as
chi chi or
chi-chi.
And I must admit that I quite like these reduplicating words like
muumuu,
cancan and
chichi that have come into view in the 7-by-many puzzle. Has
couscous made an appearance? I can't recall seeing it.
The Shorter Oxford defines
chichi, as an adjective, as:
Showy, frilly, fussy; affected.
And as a noun:
Showiness, fussiness; affectation; a frilly or showy thing.
Merriam-Webster online has three senses for the adjective (with corresponding definitions for the noun):
1 : elaborately ornamented : showy, frilly
// a chichi dress
2 : arty, precious
// chichi poetry
3 : chic, fashionable
// a chichi nightclub
The third M-W definition, without any necessary implication of affectation, seems to be the one people often have in mind when they use the word these days, so I feel the Oxford is a little deficient here.
Mkenuk asked, "Do people still
use words like this any more?" Well, it appears that quite a few do. The word, in English, is not all that old. In the senses listed above, it dates from the early 20th century.
Some usage examples:
John Le Carre,
The Spy Who Came in from the Cold (1963):
'What bank?'
'Blatt and Rodney, a chichi little bank in the City. There's a sort of theory in the Circus that Etonians are discreet.'
This dialogue was also in the film version, with Richard Burton. From a more recent (and possibly less memorable) movie,
Superman: Brainiac Attacks (2006):
I like cheeseburgers and chili fries. She likes chichi. It's her job to like chichi.
And from
Not Easily Broken (2009):
He's a federal judge and she's a chichi art dealer.
The word also appears occasionally in TV soaps. From
The Young and the Restless in 2012:
Well, I thought it would be good on our second date if we went to a place a little less, uh, chichi.
And from
One Life to Live in 2010:
Well, screw the mall. There is a chichi boutique right downstairs.
Turning to the TV reality genre,
Kitchen Nightmares in 2011 had:
I don't know what Chef Ramsay expected, but it's not a chichi place. I'm not a chichi kind of guy. I'm more down to earth.
Journalists are also partial to the word. For example, the
Chicago Tribune in January this year:
The wealthy have long sought to retreat from public life on this chichi barrier island. High society knows a thing or two about discretion, and one could hardly pick a better place for seclusion than a luxurious oceanfront mansion during the glorious South Florida winter.
From the
Boston Globe, November 2020:
The cafe culture spawned by the success of Starbucks (which is nearing its 50th anniversary) took hold so completely that even my beloved Dunkin' Donuts (celebrating its 70th anniversary this year) got a bit chichi on us, rebranding itself as just Dunkin' to signal it was a beverage-led retailer, and introducing items like "Nitro-infused Cold Brew Coffee."
The
Baltimore Sun in September 2020:
I told Hastings that, given all the poaching that the big-spending Netflix does, I'm surprised that some Disney executive hasn't thrown a drink in his face at a chichi restaurant, "Appointment in Samarra" style.
The
Spectator in August 2020:
There's a chichi little kitchen, with a beautiful stove and wood fire.
The
Telegraph (UK), January 2020:
The eight-country amble takes in Austrian mountains, chichi resorts on the Italian Riviera and a panorama of Monaco before pulling into Nice in time for the Cours Saleya flower market on Saturday.
And the
Daily Mail in 2016:
But then cut off in their chichi catchment areas, where houses cost millions, the liberal commentariat has no experience of what it's like for white working-class parents to see their sons sink to the bottom of the heap in schools where English is barely spoken.
So, while
chichi isn't very common, it isn't very uncommon either. I would say it's definitely more common than
philippic. I'm going to leave it in the common category.
