grandstanding

American  

[gran-stan-ding, grand-] / ˈgrænˌstæn dɪŋ, ˈgrænd- /

noun

1. the act or practice of behaving or performing in a showy way in an attempt to impress others.

   With nearly 14 million unemployed, this grandstanding over such a comparatively small retraining program (only 10,000 people) is downright insulting.

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adjective

1. being or engaging in this kind of behavior or performance.

   It’s a nice, quiet movie—no guns or car chases, no grandstanding actors, and not too fast-paced.

Etymology

Origin of grandstanding

First recorded in 1895–1900; grandstand ( def. ) + -ing ¹ ( def. ) for the noun; grandstand ( def. ) + -ing ² ( def. ) for the adjective

Example Sentences

Instead, officials “chose grandstanding instead of the normal process” and arrested Williamson at home Wednesday, despite her being seriously ill and in need of a liver transplant, Scott said.

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 13, 2025

Whatever the grandstanding of pundits, it can't have been an easy decision.

From BBC • Oct. 30, 2025

But it is so firmly grounded in truthful and complicated detail drawn from Mr. Dunne’s actual experience that it makes its powerful moral argument without any need for grandstanding or preaching.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 2, 2025

Hitler discovered that courtrooms were the perfect platform for his political grandstanding.

From Salon • Aug. 5, 2024

He was grandstanding, Inej saw that, buying her time as she leapt over the slate shingles.

From "Six of Crows" by Leigh Bardugo

Related Words

• egocentric
• egotistical
• self-absorbed
• self-indulgent
• selfish