meaning of 'tony lifestyle'?

I've seen this term twice now and have no clue what it means. Google search for definition and Urban Dictionary were no help. Here's one of the sentences I saw it in:

New TV show:
"The premiere of the drama about a lawyer whose tony lifestyle is threatened by childhood pals seeking his help righting a 25-year-old wrong."

So what does it mean?

Thanks.

 

All I'm getting in google results is Tony Abbott saying some disconnected BS. Urban Dicitonary has literally no results which is worrying.
I found some references to it also in reference to lawyers on second google try. So maybe it has something to do with lawyers? Although I did use the word "lawyer" in my second search so IDK.

 

I think it means ritzy, but I can't really give you the etymology or anything. Maybe related to "tone", like the tone of the apartment was modern and expensive.

 

It does seem to imply some kind of wealthy, livin' it up kind of thing.

 

From the Oxford English Dictionary:

Tony

Pronunciation: /ˈtəʊni/

adjective (tonier, toniest)

North American informal Fashionable among wealthy or stylish people: 'a tony restaurant'

Examples:

• 'There's a fear that the valley may grow from a place where people of modest means can live and work into a tony enclave for wealthy second-home owners.'

• 'Fried chicken gets the respect it deserves at his tony restaurant.'

• 'Until recently, mache - also known as lamb's lettuce or corn salad and a longtime staple in France - could be found here mainly in tony restaurants and upscale markets.'

ETA: Etymology from Wiktionary here.

 

Thanks. Where did you find that?

 

Where it says — in the Oxford English Dictionary and Wiktionary. Click the links and you'll see where.

 

Okay, let me rephrase that, what process led you there? Did you just search for "tony"?

 

Yes, I did, in those places, not in Google.

 

And here I thought it meant living life like Tony Soprano.

 

Funny that the OED ascribes it as a North American-ism. I'm North American. I've never heard/seen that word used that way until just now.

 

Me neither. But I see my mistake now. I thought it was some kind of slang so I looked for 'tony lifestyle' definition when I should have looked up the definition of tony.

 

I think I've found the explanation as to why this term feels so unfamiliar/foreign to you and me:



I mean, there are tons of terms from the turn of the 20th century that were the thing to say at the time, but... I mean.... when was the last time anything was the bee's knees or the cat's meow? Can't remember the last time a shapely pair of legs were referred to as gams or a anyone asked who put the nickel in me.

Who's trying to revive that term? Steve Rogers?

(See what I did there? Steve Rogers, Tony Stark.)

 

Any given day in my mother's house.