pretentiousness

noun

Definition of pretentiousnessnext
1
as in arrogance
an exaggerated sense of one's importance that shows itself in the making of excessive or unjustified claims everyone took her ingrained pretentiousness into account when considering her statements

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in ostentation
excessive or unnecessary display the sheer pretentiousness of the debutante's wedding

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in affectation
the quality or state of appearing or trying to appear more important or more valuable than is the case the utter pretentiousness of the movie is matched only by the incomprehensibility of its story

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Examples Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for pretentiousness
  1. arrogance
  2. ostentation
  3. affectation
  4. superiority
  5. pomp
  6. pretension
  7. flamboyance
  8. pretense
Noun
  • Trump’s Comments About The Panama Canal Trump remarked that the United States should regain control of the Panama Canal, a statement that evoked arrogance and colonialism in the past.
    Ken Silverstein, Forbes, 13 Jan. 2025
  • The historical 'attitude' (arrogance) in his acting has fueled MAGA, and his endorsements of Trump are undeniably overbearing and irrational.
    Tommy Tuberville, Newsweek, 8 Jan. 2025
Definition of arrogance
Noun
  • The pink-and-brown mansion, often considered a monument to Roaring 20s ostentation, stretches from Lake Worth to the Atlantic Ocean and contains 58 bedrooms, 33 bathrooms, three bomb shelters, a theater, a ballroom and a nine-hole golf course.
    Miami Herasld Archives, Miami Herald, 7 Jan. 2025
  • Castel Di Luco, Le Marche, Italy Like many of Italy’s most impressive accommodations, the newly reborn Castel di Luco isn’t a place of ostentation.
    Ann Abel, Forbes, 18 Dec. 2024
Definition of ostentation
Noun
  • She’s doe-eyed and eager and preening with Grande adopting a mid-century affectation, à la Gloria Grahame in Oklahoma!
    Fran Hoepfner, Vulture, 27 Nov. 2024
  • Some have weird affectations that appear to have no actual purpose, some have extraordinary techniques few others can match.
    Nick Miller, The Athletic, 9 July 2024
Definition of affectation
Noun
  • Absolute Dominion takes place In the year 2063 AD, when the world faces catastrophe as zealots and extremists wage a global holy war in the name of spiritual superiority.
    Andreas Wiseman, Deadline, 13 Jan. 2025
  • The dominant view in Washington argues for peace through strength, that only clear military superiority can deter China’s ambitions to subsume Taiwan and exert dominance across the Indo-Pacific.
    Brad Dress, The Hill, 7 Jan. 2025
Definition of superiority
Noun
  • Dune has the Two Towers issue of being the middle installment in a trilogy, and Gladiator, underneath its CGI pomp, is still a Ridley Scott film — and Sir Ridley hasn’t produced a major Oscar player in nearly a decade.
    Nate Jones, Vulture, 28 Sep. 2024
  • Then, Samantha Leach will tell us how the television show Real Housewives of Salt Lake City is leading more than a few members of the Mormon church to choose pomp over piety.
    airmail.news, airmail.news, 17 Aug. 2024
Definition of pomp
Noun
  • There were no pretensions of showmanship, no displays of braggadocio — just the hollow ringing of palms on goatskin.
    Taran Dugal, Rolling Stone, 16 Dec. 2024
  • The car comes equipped with the standard sensor suite for cars with pretensions to urban autonomy: lidars on the roof and around the front bumper, and radar and cameras just about everywhere else.
    IEEE Spectrum, IEEE Spectrum, 29 Dec. 2016
Definition of pretension
Noun
  • On stage at British television’s biggest annual gathering in 2023, Paramount UK content chief Ben Frow recounted the story of his resignation with signature flamboyance.
    Jake Kanter, Deadline, 6 Jan. 2025
  • As originally voiced by Jeremy Irons, Scar had a sinewy, slithery flamboyance that turned him into an unlikely gay icon.
    Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 19 Dec. 2024
Definition of flamboyance
Noun
  • In the most recent suit, filed Dec. 27 in Los Angeles County Superior Court, former patients accuse Brock of groping their breasts and genitals unnecessarily under the pretense of legitimate medical examinations.
    Corinne Purtill, Los Angeles Times, 3 Jan. 2025
  • Both Loughlin and Giannulli, 57, pleaded guilty last May to paying $500,000 in bribes to get Olivia Jade and Isabella fraudulently admitted to the University of Southern California on the pretense of being recruits for the school’s rowing team.
    Martha Ross, The Mercury News, 5 Dec. 2024
Definition of pretense
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Thesaurus Entries Near pretentiousness

pretentiously

pretentiousness

pretermission

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“Pretentiousness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pretentiousness. Accessed 21 Jan. 2025.

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