prideful

American  

[prahyd-fuhl] / ˈpraɪd fəl /

adjective

1. thinking too highly of oneself; conceited, arrogant, or overconfident.

   I was too bitter and prideful and didn't think I needed the Addiction Recovery meetings, so I didn’t go.

2. full of a legitimate sense of self-worth or satisfaction because of one’s own or another’s accomplishment.

   It is a prideful moment for us as we congratulate our friend, one of ten winners of the annual Worldwide Robotics contest.

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Other Word Forms

• pridefulness
  noun
• unprideful
  adjective
• pridefully
  adverb
• unpridefully
  adverb

Etymology

Origin of prideful

pride ( def. ) + -ful ( def. )

Explanation

Someone who's prideful is arrogant and disdainful. Prideful people don't usually have many friends, since they think they're superior to everyone else. Although the adjective prideful is occasionally used simply to mean "proud," or pleased and happy because of some achievement or quality, it usually means something closer to "haughty." If you know someone who's beyond proud, believing they're smarter, more beautiful, or just generally better than most other people, you can describe that person as prideful.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

prideful

Knoxville was a small but prideful city at the time.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 1, 2026

This is not the time to be prideful about how much stress and responsibility you can take on.

From MarketWatch ● Mar. 9, 2026

The buildings that housed a prideful labor force are vandalized, colonized by squatters or boarded up.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 15, 2026

While I firmly believe moviegoing audiences should be less averse to slow pacing, there’s an almost prideful lack of explanation for the context of images flickering across the screen.

From Salon ● May 19, 2025

As the trio passed them, Jess could see Janice’s face all pink and prideful.

From "Bridge to Terabithia" by Katherine Paterson

Related Words

• dignified
• proud
• self-respecting
• upstanding