Ugly American

British  

noun

1. a stereotypical representation of an American tourist as a brash and insensitive philistine

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Etymology

Origin of Ugly American

C20: from title of a novel (1958) by William Lederer and Eugene Burdick

Example Sentences

His behavior was that of the infamous Ugly American.

From Salon

Those dudes are trying to play the sinister “ugly American” roles, although with a singular lack of suavity and not much success.

From Salon

Jordan is insufferable, the worst kind of self-entitled Ugly American, but also endearing, perceptive and admirable in his tenacity.

From Los Angeles Times

I'd already heard the expression "the ugly American" — although I then knew nothing about the prophetic 1958 novel with that title about U.S. diplomatic bumbling in southeast Asia in the midst of the Cold War — and it seemed to me that those interlopers in France fit the term perfectly.

From Salon

“We try so hard not to be the ugly American,” one woman lamented.

From New York Times