honky tonk
Cheap dance hall
Honky-tonk is a rough, working-class bar, especially in the American South, typically featuring country music and dancing.
The music played there—twangy, piano-driven country—is also called honky-tonk: We spent Saturday night at a honky-tonk outside Austin.
As an adjective, it describes anything with that rowdy, unpretentious barroom character: honky-tonk piano, a honky-tonk atmosphere.
Sharp vibrating sound
- steel guitarSlide-played stringed instrument
- fiddleAdjust restlessly; folk violin
- jukeboxCoin-operated music player
- tearjerkerEmotionally manipulative entertainment
cheating songs · drinking songs · weeper · three chords · heartbreak · upright bass · western swing · boogie-woogie
Drinking establishment
- tavernPublic drinking establishment
- diveHeadfirst water entry
- roadhouseWayside drinking establishment
- juke jointInformal Southern music bar
beer joint · watering hole · cantina · saloon · joint · hangout · neon sign · sawdust floor
Noisily disorderly
- raucousLoud and disorderly
- smokyFilled with combustion haze
- loudHigh in volume
- boisterousNoisily cheerful and energetic
dim · sweaty · crowded · lively · rough · raw · gritty · carousing
Mounted cattle herder
- bootsAnkle-covering footwear
- hatGarment for the head
- buckleFrame-and-prong fastener
- pearl snapsDecorative press-stud shirt fasteners
belt buckle · pickup truck · Stetson · denim · plaid shirt · working class · blue collar · redneck
Fast paired ballroom dance
- line dancingChoreographed group country steps
- swing dancingUpbeat partnered jazz movement
- waltzDance in three-quarter time
- barn danceRural social with music
square dance · dance hall · wooden floor · spinning · dipping · slow dance
Quality from past eras
- retroEvoking recent past
- AmericanaHeritage artifacts or music
- classic countryPre-modern Nashville music
- old-schoolAdhering to past methods
golden era · 1950s · roadside · rural · small-town · heartland · bygone · timeless
twang
Sharp vibrating sound
- steel guitarSlide-played stringed instrument
- fiddleAdjust restlessly; folk violin
- jukeboxCoin-operated music player
tearjerker · cheating songs · drinking songs · weeper · three chords · heartbreak · upright bass · western swing · boogie-woogie · songwriter
bar
Drinking establishment
juke joint · beer joint · watering hole · cantina · saloon · joint · hangout · neon sign · sawdust floor · parking lot
rowdy
Noisily disorderly
boisterous · dim · sweaty · crowded · lively · rough · raw · gritty · carousing · revelry
cowboy
Mounted cattle herder
pearl snaps · belt buckle · pickup truck · Stetson · denim · plaid shirt · working class · blue collar · redneck · good ol' boy
two-step
Fast paired ballroom dance
- line dancingChoreographed group country steps
- swing dancingUpbeat partnered jazz movement
- waltzDance in three-quarter time
barn dance · square dance · dance hall · wooden floor · spinning · dipping · slow dance
vintage
Quality from past eras
- retroEvoking recent past
- AmericanaHeritage artifacts or music
- classic countryPre-modern Nashville music
old-school · golden era · 1950s · roadside · rural · small-town · heartland · bygone · timeless · throwback
- Country MusicGrand Ole Opry, Nashville, CMT, country pop, classic country
- American traditionsFourth of July, Thanksgiving, county fair, state fair, rodeo
- Deep SouthAlabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi River, Mississippi Delta
- pubstavern, pub, barroom, alehouse, public house
- venuesarena, auditorium, stadium, performing arts center, theater
- barscocktail bar, gold bar, silver bar, bartender, bar stools
honky tonkcocktail lounge
Bar with comfortable seating
wine bar · supper club · champagne bar · country club · opera house
honky tonkclassical music
Western orchestral tradition
opera · chamber music · symphony · jazz · art song
honky tonkhigh society
The social elite
upper crust · old money · country club set · Park Avenue · blue blood