poseur

American  

[poh-zur, paw-zœr] / poʊˈzɜr, pɔˈzœr /

noun

plural

poseurs

1. a person who attempts to impress others by assuming or affecting a manner, degree of elegance, sentiment, etc., other than their true one.

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poseur British  

/ pəʊˈzɜː /

noun

1. a person who strikes an attitude or assumes a pose in order to impress others

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Usage

What does poseur mean? A poseur, commonly spelled poser, is when you act like someone you're not or when you're perceived to be inauthentic. So-called emo scene kids might be called poseurs.

Etymology

Origin of poseur

From French, dating back to 1880–85; pose ¹, -eur

Example Sentences

She chanted the couplet cry of the insider outsider: “I am a poseur and I don’t care, I like to make people stare.”

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 1, 2022

You would call Urban Meyer a poseur, but he’s too evasive to hold any pose for long.

From Washington Post • Dec. 14, 2021

But he comes off like a rich poseur trying to make idealism his #brand, manically quoting progressive catchphrases the way he spat bad rap at a Season-2 party for Logan.

From New York Times • Oct. 14, 2021

Tom Callahan, an ex-Marine, knows a flimflammer, a bugiardo, a poseur, a gasconader when he hears one.

From Golf Digest • May 6, 2020

“That’s right, I called you a poseur, poseur.”

From "Ready Player One: A Novel" by Ernest Cline