semi-formal

1 3.8

Clothing style more dressy than casual but not as dressy as for very special events

adjective
/ˈsɛmiˈfɔrməl/

: semi-formal

Sometimes, depending on which group you're in, you might need a tux, suit, or semi-formal wear.
semi-formal and informal

Examples

Students dressed in semi-formal and casual clothes.

Blog text (4)
Did someone forget to tell Dad that this was a semi-formal affair?

Nobel Son (2007)
And you can see here from a distance it looks like a semi formal or even formal long sleeve shirt, which is great.
At each AEC, the Presidents Banquet, a semi-formal occasion of dinner and celebration, is the final networking and social event.

Academic text (2003)
Baker explained that the dinner is considered a semi-formal event, for which people pay $50 for food, live music, and an art auction in which people can bid on pieces created by local artists depicting local landscapes.

Blog text (18)
Did someone forget to tell Dad that this was a semi-formal affair?
Is the wedding semi-formal, formal, or informal?
Students dressed in semi-formal and casual clothes.

Synonyms

semiformal

vssemi-formal

1 5.1

Clothing or style for events that is nicer than casual but not very dressy

is the hyphenated written form used for the same moderately formal dress code

Antonyms

formal

Formal

394 3.0

Official and proper in a way suitable for important occasions

informal

98 3.1

Not formal or official, relaxed and casual

How Formal

black tie

Formal

12 3.7

formal

1 3.5

semi-formal

1 3.8

casual

81 1.3

Surface Forms

semi-formal positive

Morphology

semi-formal = formal (transparent) = semi + formal

The meaning is directly compositional: 'semi-' means partly or moderately, and 'formal' supplies the base sense.

Etymology

Semi-formal mixes semi- meaning 'half' and formal, and you can see semi- in semicircle, so it literally means 'half formal'. So a semi-formal event asks for clothes that are smarter than casual but not as dressy as black tie.