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braggart

American  
[brag-ert] / ˈbræg ərt /

noun

  • braggarts
    plural
  1. a person who does a lot of bragging.


adjective

  1. bragging; boastful.

braggart British  
/ ˈbræɡət /

noun

  1. a person who boasts loudly or exaggeratedly; bragger

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

adjective

  1. boastful

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

Inflected Forms

Nouns


Etymology

Origin of braggart

First recorded in 1570–80; brag + -art


Explanation

If you know someone who is a real show off and is always bragging about how great they are, then you might call this boaster a braggart. Braggart is a pejorative word, which means it is used as an insult, so you shouldn’t call your boss or your teacher a braggart — unless you’re looking for trouble. Braggart is similar to other pejoratives like blowhard or bigmouth. Braggarts are characterized by talking loudly (usually in praise of themselves, their possessions, or their accomplishments) and are quick to assert their superiority over others.

Keep Reading on Vocabulary.com

Vocabulary lists containing braggart

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.

See Examples For:

In Shakespeare’s “Love’s Labour’s Lost,” buffoonish actors play “the pedant, the braggart, the hedge priest, the fool, and the boy.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 21, 2026

A fast talker who exudes confidence but isn’t a braggart, Newman looks far younger than 49.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 24, 2025

He comes across as an insecure braggart in the indictment, a man desperate to cling to his status after an embarrassing fall from power.

From Slate ● Jun. 10, 2023

Sonny Barger, 83, the bigger-than-life godfather of the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club, equal parts brawler, bully, braggart, rule breaker and shrewd huckster of his own outlaw mystique, died Wednesday at his home in California.

From Seattle Times ● Jul. 1, 2022

Had she been a braggart, it would have been much easier to hate her.

From "Me Talk Pretty One Day" by David Sedaris

Service to fellow wine lovers is clearly key in r/wine—a refreshing change from platforms like Instagram, where bottle-shot braggarts abound.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 8, 2026

Rodell's team found similar results when surveying an additional 218 real-life employees about their experiences with stress braggarts.

From Science Daily ● May 23, 2024

Also, panderers, seducers, traffickers in flattery, false prophets, braggarts and thieves.

From Washington Post ● Mar. 4, 2021

“He just did not suffer fools, braggarts, or idiots well.”

From Washington Times ● Oct. 18, 2020

Unless a group of little girls chanted some especially clever riddle, my mother, who distrusts people with public concerns, braggarts, went over to the quiet older girls with the dignified bows.

From "The Woman Warrior" by Maxine Hong Kingston

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