haughtiness

American  

[haw-tee-nis] / ˈhɔ ti nɪs /

noun

1. scornful pride, snobbishness, or arrogance.

   I was accused of having an air of superiority, of haughtiness, of indifference or condescension to others.

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Other Word Forms

• overhaughtiness
  noun

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Etymology

Origin of haughtiness

haughty ( def. ) + -ness ( def. )

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Explanation

If you are shy and have a hard time talking to others, people might wrongly interpret your quietness as haughtiness. Haughtiness is thinking a lot of yourself and not much of others. The word haughtiness originally comes from the Old French adjective haut meaning "high" and later developed to mean having a high estimation of yourself. When you think of the word, imagine a Queen riding by on a horse, chin upturned, not paying any mind to her subjects below. Her Highness might as well be called Her Haughtiness up there.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

haughtiness

He began as a William Morris socialist but quickly became suspicious of any sweeping social panacea, to the point of intellectual haughtiness.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 14, 2025

Malick, who inhabits Gail’s Southern haughtiness with crisp authority, wields her character’s cane as though it were a general’s baton.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 16, 2023

However, Bonne Maman doesn't come with the haughtiness that is sometimes associated with French fine dining; it's literally marketed as the kind of food that would be made by a grandmother in a French farmhouse.

From Salon ● Jan. 30, 2023

He’s also learned how to deploy — and puncture — Thor’s inborn pomposity, although by the time the final credits rolled in “Ragnarok” that haughtiness had turned into shtick.

From New York Times ● Jul. 7, 2022

The new haughtiness in Shomari’s stance was insufferable.

From "Beasts of Prey" by Ayana Gray

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