racy

racy
    adj 1: full of zest or vigor; "a racy literary style" [syn:
           {lively}, {racy}]
    2: marked by richness and fullness of flavor; "a rich ruby
       port"; "full-bodied wines"; "a robust claret"; "the robust
       flavor of fresh-brewed coffee" [syn: {full-bodied}, {racy},
       {rich}, {robust}]
    3: suggestive of sexual impropriety; "a blue movie"; "blue
       jokes"; "he skips asterisks and gives you the gamy details";
       "a juicy scandal"; "a naughty wink"; "naughty words"; "racy
       anecdotes"; "a risque story"; "spicy gossip" [syn: {blue},
       {gamy}, {gamey}, {juicy}, {naughty}, {racy}, {risque},
       {spicy}]
    4: designed or suitable for competing in a race
    

Racy \Ra"cy\ (r[=a]"s[y^]), a. [Compar. {Racier}
   (r[=a]"s[i^]*[~e]r); superl. {Raciest}.] [From {Race} a
   tribe, family.]
   1. Having a strong flavor indicating origin; of distinct
      characteristic taste; tasting of the soil; hence, fresh;
      rich.
      [1913 Webster]

            The racy wine,
            Late from the mellowing cask restored to light.
                                                  --Pope.
      [1913 Webster]

   2. Hence: Exciting to the mental taste by a strong or
      distinctive character of thought or language; peculiar and
      piquant; fresh and lively; vigorous; spirited.
      [1913 Webster]

            Our raciest, most idiomatic popular words. --M.
                                                  Arnold.
      [1913 Webster]

            Burns's English, though not so racy as his Scotch,
            is generally correct.                 --H.
                                                  Coleridge.
      [1913 Webster]

            The rich and racy humor of a natural converser fresh
            from the plow.                        --Prof.
                                                  Wilson.
      [1913 Webster]

   3. Somewhat suggestive of sexual themes; slightly improper;
      risqu['e].
      [PJC]

   Syn: Spicy; spirited; lively; smart; piquant; risqu['e].

   Usage: {Racy}, {Spicy}. Racy refers primarily to that
          peculiar flavor which certain wines are supposed to
          derive from the soil in which the grapes were grown;
          and hence we call a style or production racy when it
          "smacks of the soil," or has an uncommon degree of
          natural freshness and distinctiveness of thought and
          language. Spicy, when applied to style, has reference
          to a spirit and pungency added by art, seasoning the
          matter like a condiment. It does not, like racy,
          suggest native peculiarity. A spicy article in a
          magazine; a spicy retort. Racy in conversation; a racy
          remark.
          [1913 Webster]

                Rich, racy verses, in which we
                The soil from which they come, taste, smell, and
                see.                              --Cowley.
          [1913 Webster]
    

94 Moby Thesaurus words for "racy":
      adult, animated, bawdy, blue, brisk, broad, buoyant, burning,
      coarse, crude, curried, dirty, dynamic, earthy, energetic,
      exciting, fiery, filthy, flavorful, fresh, full of beans,
      full of pep, gross, high-seasoned, hot, hot as pepper, immodest,
      indecent, indelicate, interesting, inviting, juicy, lewd, lively,
      lusty, mettlesome, naughty, nippy, obscene, off color, off-color,
      peppery, peppy, piquant, poignant, pornographic, provocative,
      provoking, pungent, purple, raunchy, readable, ribald, rich, risky,
      risque, rude, salacious, salty, savory, scabrous, seasoned, sexual,
      sexy, shady, sharp, smutty, snappy, sparkling, spiced, spicy,
      spirited, sprightly, stimulating, strong, succulent, suggestive,
      tangy, tantalizing, tart, tasty, thought-challenging,
      thought-inspiring, thought-provoking, tickling, titillating,
      vigorous, vivacious, vulgar, wicked, with a kick, zestful, zesty,
      zippy