vain
Americanadjective
-
excessively proud of or concerned about one's own appearance, qualities, achievements, etc.; conceited.
a vain dandy.
- Synonyms:
- overweening, arrogant, proud, vainglorious, self-complacent, egotistic
- Antonyms:
- humble
-
proceeding from or showing pride in or concern about one's appearance, qualities, etc.; resulting from or displaying vanity.
He made some vain remarks about his accomplishments.
-
ineffectual or unsuccessful; futile.
vain hopes;
a vain effort;
a vain war.
- Synonyms:
- unavailing, fruitless
- Antonyms:
- useful
-
without real significance, value, or importance; baseless or worthless.
vain pageantry;
vain display.
-
Archaic. senseless or foolish.
idioms
adjective
-
inordinately proud of one's appearance, possessions, or achievements
-
given to ostentatious display, esp of one's beauty
-
worthless
-
senseless or futile
noun
-
to no avail; fruitlessly
-
-
to use the name of someone, esp God, without due respect or reverence
-
humorous to mention someone's name
-
Synonym Usage
See useless.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of vain
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English, from Old French, from Latin vānus “empty, vain”
Explanation
If you spend all day admiring yourself in reflective surfaces — mirrors, pools of water, the backs of spoons — people may think you are conceited, or vain. Vain is from Latin vanus, "empty," and in English it originally meant "lacking value or effect, futile," like your vain attempt to find a pencil in your messy, overstuffed backpack. Likewise, the phrase "in vain" means "without success." Vain also means "conceited, too proud of oneself." Carly Simon's line "You're so vain, you probably think this song is about you" is an excellent illustration of this use.
Vocabulary lists containing vain
The Vocabulary.com Top 1000
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"Romeo and Juliet" by William Shakespeare, Act I
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Abraham Lincoln's "Gettysburg Address" (1863)
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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.
That was supposed to be followed by Olivia Rodrigo and Alanis Morissette dueting on "You're So Vain," but the Canadian rock-star dropped out.
From Salon • Nov. 8, 2022
Simon, 76, is a singer-songwriter known for "You're So Vain," "Anticipation" and other songs of the 1970s.
From Reuters • May 4, 2022
The process for making the Vain German portraits allowed for a sense of ugliness or awkwardness as well.
From New York Times • Mar. 18, 2022
“We said, ‘Let’s make something crazy,’” Vain said.
From Seattle Times • Feb. 15, 2022
Vain favour! coming, like most other favours long deferred and often wished for, too late!
From "Jane Eyre" by Charlotte Brontë
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
