The story
Shortened from tawdry lace; originally a corruption and rebracketing of Saint Audrey lace (from Old English Æðelþrȳð). The lace necklaces sold to pilgrims to Saint Audrey fell out of fashion in the 17th century, and so tawdry was reinterpreted as meaning “cheap” or “vulgar”.
First known use, by meaning
- 17th c. Tawdry lace.
- 17th–19th c. Anything gaudy and cheap; pretentious finery.
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.