puffed-up
Americanadjective
-
feeling self-important; arrogant; pompous.
-
swollen; puffy.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The puffed-up version is a lot less interesting and humanly evocative than the true version.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 19, 2026
Claudius comes across as a sinister puffed-up phony.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 25, 2026
One woman sits grinning idiotically at a huge, puffed-up pillow on her lap.
From Slate ● Jul. 21, 2025
"In fact, we look like we're peacefully and freely performing a big, fat show to a puffed-up and hateful power. The message is clear: they have no power over us!"
From BBC ● Jun. 28, 2025
Only Bram could wrangle a giant puffed-up marshmallow so neatly.
From "Leah on the Offbeat" by Becky Albertalli
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
