Scarlet O'Hara

noun

A glamorous or sophisticated woman, especially a Southern belle known for putting off worrying until "tomorrow".

Meanings

nounScarlet O'Hara (plural Scarlet O'Haras)

plural Scarlet O'Haras

  1. A glamorous or sophisticated woman, especially a Southern belle known for putting off worrying until "tomorrow".

    Do you have any advice for the Scarlet O'Haras among us?

    2007, John Middleton, Detox Your Finances (52 Brilliant Ideas), page 245
    5 more examples

    Bayanova had stories about Shaliapin, about Prince Obalensky, about famous Gypsy orchestras and the nightclubs of Monte Carlo. Later, her life was the tale of warfare, flight, repression, and odds. Loves lost, estates surrendered, Bayanova found herself the Scarlet O’Hara of Bucharest. She sang more than once for Ceausescu.

    2008 March 11, Elizabeth Kiem, “Alla Bayanova on the Arbat”, in The Morning News, archived from the original on 06 Aug 2026

    Tara was a fierce competitor and had been victorious in most of the party games. She was the Scarlet O'Hara of the party. Most of the guests were her friends, and she schmoozed like an assistant angling for a promotion.

    2017, Rick Tuber, Should Have Seen It Coming, Friesen Press

    Like many people, Linda has the Scarlett O'Hara approach to mindful eating: I'll think about that tomorrow. Who hasn't declared a plan to initiate change tomorrow, next week, or after some event happens? We often say such things simply to soothe ourselves.

    2011, Susan Albers, But I Deserve This Chocolate!: The Fifty Most Common Diet-Derailing Excuses and How to Outwit Them, New Harbinger Publications, page 44

    By the time Iggy hit the Max's scene with a vengeance in 1971, Leee Black Childers - the Scarlet O'Hara of punk and Glam Rock, a Southern belle in red rock'n'roll shoes sporting a black leather jacket - and Cherry Vanilla, an Irish-Catholic deviationist, were effectively the New York emissaries for a musical phenomenon about to change the face of rock history, and the life and career of Jim Osterberg from Hicksville, USA.

    2009, Joe Ambrose, Gimme Danger: The Story of Iggy Pop, Omnibus Press

    "For the role of Roxanne, the Scarlet O'Hara of the 1980s, we have narrowed our choice down to one of five fabulous ladies. Please stand up, Ms. Rachel Evans."

    2005, Harry Brooks, A Family Secret, page 421

Synonyms & antonyms

Origin

From the character Scarlet O'Hara from the novel and film Gone With the Wind.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

Scarlet O'Hara. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Scarlet%20O'Hara

MLA

“Scarlet O'Hara.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Scarlet%20O'Hara. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Scarlet O'Hara,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Scarlet%20O'Hara.

Source: Scarlet O'Hara on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.