adjective
- resembling or characteristic of a university don; scholarly in a pedantic or pompous way
Usage: often mildly derogatory
Examples
- His donnish manner of speaking made him seem aloof from his students.
- She found his donnish obsession with obscure literary references tiresome.
- The professor’s donnish habits included wearing tweed jackets and smoking a pipe.
- His donnish air of superiority alienated many of his colleagues.
- The book was criticized for its donnish tone and inaccessible language.
- Despite his donnish appearance, he was surprisingly approachable and friendly.