pseudointellectual

American  

[soo-doh-in-tl-ek-choo-uhl] / ˌsu doʊˌɪn tlˈɛk tʃu əl /

noun

1. a person exhibiting intellectual pretensions that have no basis in sound scholarship.

2. a person who pretends an interest in intellectual matters for reasons of status.

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adjective

1. of, relating to, or characterized by fraudulent intellectuality; unscholarly.

   a pseudointellectual book.

Other Word Forms

• pseudointellectually adverb

Etymology

Origin of pseudointellectual

First recorded in 1935–40; pseudo- + intellectual

Example Sentences

She was explaining to Gyllenhaal how she based a character in her latest film, “Don’t Worry Darling,” on Jordan Peterson, a professor turned proselytizer whom Wilde described as “this pseudointellectual hero to the incel community.”

From Washington Post • Sep. 24, 2022

All I cared about was Pacey Witter and Joey Potter growing old together and adopting me as their fast-talking, pseudointellectual daughter, Amanda Witter-Potter.

From Salon • Nov. 11, 2019

“The Answers” features a large cast, and Lacey’s depictions of everyone from Kurt, a narcissistic, pseudointellectual movie actor, to Matheson, Kurt’s devoted assistant, are deliciously shrewd.

From Washington Post • Jun. 6, 2017

The appeal of his ceaseless efforts to assail the "pseudointellectual" elements in our nation has particularly concerned me.

From Time Magazine Archive

"They're not bad, yeah. A bit pseudointellectual but, hey, aren't we all?"

From "Will Grayson, Will Grayson" by John Green and David Levithan