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definitions

high-flown

[hahy-flohn]
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adjective
  1. extravagant in aims, pretensions, etc.
  2. pretentiously lofty; bombastic: We couldn't endure his high-flown oratory.

Origin of high-flown

First recorded in 1640–50

Synonyms for high-flown

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2. florid, flowery, magniloquent, grandiloquent.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for high-flown

bombastic, elaborate, exaggerated, extravagant, grandiloquent, grandiose, inflated, showy, turgid

Examples from the Web for high-flown

Contemporary Examples of high-flown

Historical Examples of high-flown

  • He is discoursing in a high-flown vein, which may be compared to the 'dithyrambics of the Phaedrus.'

  • He returned a high-flown phrase of thanks in a bitter, absent whisper.

    Romance

    Joseph Conrad and F.M. Hueffer

  • Also, that whenever he killed a calf he made a high-flown speech over it.

  • For the next two days Carrie indulged in the most high-flown speculations.

    Sister Carrie

    Theodore Dreiser

  • These high-flown lectures and discussions have filled all their heads with nonsense.

British Dictionary definitions for high-flown

high-flown

adjective
  1. extravagant or pretentious in conception or intentionhigh-flown ideas
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