pretentious
adjective
characterized by assumption of dignity or importance, especially when exaggerated or undeserved.
pretentiousness
-
a word derived from
pretentious.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Some of X’s pretentiousness — she is given to statements like “To be rebellious and to distrust rebellion is the plight of the tragic artist” — bleeds over into the book itself.
From New York Times ● Mar. 20, 2023
Perhaps not surprisingly, narcissistic arrogance can also come out in the ways one usually associated with pomposity — "pretentiousness, preening, snobbery, a sense they are better than others," according to Durvasula.
From Salon ● Jan. 26, 2023
The class had been watching French New Wave films and Braden decided to parody their pretentiousness.
From Seattle Times ● Jun. 24, 2022
The pretentiousness of acting is a fun thing to lampoon, and “Official Competition” does it with surgical precision.
From Washington Post ● Jun. 21, 2022
But Cassy, instinctively insolent to pretentiousness, was very simple with the simple.
From The Paliser case by Edgar Saltus
