fogy

IPA/ˈfəʊɡi/
KK[fˈoɡi]IPA/ˈfəʊɡi/

fogy — noun

1. an often elderly person who clings to outdated habits, opinions, or tastes, and

1.nounC1
Definition

an often elderly person who clings to outdated habits, opinions, or tastes, and resists anything new — for example, refusing to use a smartphone or insisting that all music recorded after 1970 is rubbish.

Example

Hiroshi calls himself an old fogy because he still prefers paper maps over GPS.

common collocation: old fogy

Don't be such a fogy — try the new ramen place before deciding it's no good.

informal address: 'don't be such a fogy'

Common collocations
  • old fogy
  • stuffy old fogy
  • bunch of fogies
  • fogies on the board
Synonyms
  • stick-in-the-mud

    informal; emphasises refusal to try anything new, regardless of age

  • dinosaur

    informal, mildly mocking; suggests someone has not kept up with modern developments

  • traditionalist

    neutral; respects old ways by principle rather than out of stubbornness

  • reactionary

    formal and political; actively opposes social or political change

Antonyms
  • trendsetter

    someone who eagerly adopts and spreads new fashions or ideas

  • progressive

    favours reform and modern approaches over inherited ones

Grammar Patterns

often: old fogy

Usage Note

Almost always pejorative or self-deprecating. Frequently preceded by 'old' even when the person is not literally old — 'old fogy' is a fixed collocation. Plural is usually spelt 'fogies' (sometimes 'fogeys').

Common Mistakes

He is a fogy man.
He is an old fogy.
'fogy' is a noun, not an adjective; it cannot premodify another noun.
She fogies about new technology.
She is a fogy about new technology.
'fogy' has no verb form.

Word family

  • fogyish
    adjectiveC2
  • fogyism
    nounC2

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

All four label someone who prefers old ways, but they differ sharply in tone and scope. 'Fogy' (usually 'old fogy') is informal and mildly mocking, and almost always implies the person is elderly or behaves as if they were — it pictures someone genuinely set in their ways. 'Stick-in-the-mud' is also informal but focuses on the refusal to try anything new, regardless of age; a twenty-year-old who never wants to leave home can be a stick-in-the-mud. 'Dinosaur' is the most cutting of the three informal terms, suggesting the person has been left behind by progress and is faintly absurd. 'Traditionalist', by contrast, is neutral or even respectful: a traditionalist follows older customs by principle, not stubbornness. Compare: 'Grandpa is an old fogy who hates streaming services' (gently mocking) vs. 'Grandpa is a traditionalist who values vinyl recordings' (approving).

fogy ↗stick-in-the-mud ↗dinosaur ↗traditionalist ↗

Etymology

English (dialectal/slang)English

First recorded in late 18th-century British and Scottish English, originally as a slang word for an invalid or wounded soldier in a garrison. The sense quickly broadened to mean any dull, conservative, or behind-the-times person, especially when paired with 'old'. The exact origin is uncertain; some etymologists link it to the now-rare verb 'fog' meaning to dull or stupefy, others to dialectal Scots 'foggie' for a moss-covered or mossy thing, suggesting something stale and unchanged.