Word.ws English Dictionary

honky-tonker

honky-tonker noun: someone who runs or frequents a honky-tonk, or performs in one.

Noun

honky-tonker (plural honky-tonkers)

  1. (US, informal) Someone who runs or frequents a honky-tonk, or performs in one.
    • To a redneck honky-tonker, nothing beats a dozen cold beers, a bloody fight and a woman usually in that order.1977, Bill AuCoin, Redneck, Greatlakes Living Press, →ISBN, page 22
    • In 1952 she signed with Decca Records and turned out a hit that settled her in as the reigning queen of country music and a prototypical honky tonker—“It Wasn't God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels.”1986, Charles T. Brown, Music U.S.A.: America's Country & Western Tradition, Prentice Hall, page 76
  2. A honky-tonk song.

Forms of honky-tonker

pluralhonky-tonkers
alternative formhonky tonker

Origin of honky-tonker

From honky-tonk + -er.

Questions about honky-tonker

What does honky-tonker mean?
Honky-tonker means someone who runs or frequents a honky-tonk, or performs in one.
What part of speech is honky-tonker?
Honky-tonker is a noun.
What is the plural of honky-tonker?
The plural of honky-tonker is honky-tonkers.

Words near honky-tonker in the dictionary

  1. honky tonkers
  2. honky tonks
  3. honky-tonk
  4. honky-tonk piano
  5. honky-tonk pianos
  6. honky-tonker
  7. honky-tonkers
  8. honky-tonks
  9. honkydom
  10. honkyness
  11. honkynut

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: honky-tonker (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated:

Cite this entry: “honky-tonker.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/honky-tonker. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.