Chic Meaning

"Mrs. Hominy, sir, is the lady of Major Hominy, one of our chicest spirits; and belongs Toe^([sic]) one of our most aristocratic families." — 1842 December – 1844 July, Charles Dickens, “From which It will be Seen that Martin Became a Lion on His Own Account. Together with the Reason Why.”, in The Life and Adventures of Martin Chuzzlewit, London: Chapman and Hall, […], published 1844, →OCLC, page 277:

"As he wisht to micks with the very chicest sosaity, and git the best of infmation about this country, Munseer Jools of coarse went and lodgd in Lester Square— […]" — 1847, Je—mes Pl—sh [pseudonym; William Makepeace Thackeray], “Crinoline”, in Punch, or The London Charivari, volume XIII, London: Published at the office, 85, Fleet Street, →OCLC, page 72, column 2:

"There are chic Cercles; or rather, there is only one, the Jockey Club. Why? Nobody can tell. Other Cercles are just as select, as exclusive, as well constituted, but not so chic. […] [T]he Jockey Club is so extremely chic, that many people consider the fact of belonging to it not as an ordinary circumstance, but as a dignity." — 1870 July, “Parisine”, in London Society. An Illustrated Magazine of Light and Amusing Literature for the Hours of Relaxation, volume XVIII, number CIII, London: [Printed by William Clowes and Sons], →OCLC, pages 13–14:

"What is chic may, in a sense, be fashionable, but what is fashionable cannot be chic. Anybody can wear and do what is fashionable. It is not fashionable unless a lot of people do it, and have it on—until, in three words that grate rather upon the ear, in this connection, it is common. Chic cannt be common." — 1877 September, A. de F., “Chic”, in Temple Bar: A London Magazine for Town and Country Readers, volume LI, London: Richard Bentley & Son, […] ; New York, N.Y.: Willmer and Rogers; Paris: Galignani, →OCLC, page 118:

"The hair is actually cut about the ears like that of the quaint Dutch children from the little Island of Martken. This style of coiffure gives to the grown child a chic appearance and naive insouciance that is very fascinating. The hair is worn, either parted on the side or in the middle, and is held with a jeweled band or a fillet of ribbon which is most effective. It seems a fashion not likely to be adopted to any great extent by really smart women, although La Valliere, the chic little Parisian actress, is fascinating in this style of head-dress, […]" — 1915 February, “Told in the Boudoir: Concerning Coiffures in General and in Particular”, in Frank Crowninshield, editor, Vanity Fair, volume 3, number 6, New York, N.Y.: Vanity Fair Publishing Company, →OCLC, page 74, column 1: