arrogance

noun

ar·​ro·​gance ˈer-ə-gən(t)s 

ˈa-rə-

: an offensive attitude of superiority shown especially by excessively confident or rudely dismissive behavior

found her arrogance off-putting

the sheer arrogance of his comments

Synonyms of arrogance

• superiority
• disdain
• attitude
• haughtiness
• imperiousness
• superciliousness
• presumptuousness
• pomposity

Examples of arrogance in a Sentence

He was like a movie star at his high school reunion, muting his arrogance and trying to be a regular guy for old times' sake. He seemed to genuinely appreciate the honor. —Carlo Rotella, New York Times Sports Magazine, June 2008

This kind of official arrogance is not new, of course, although it is perhaps more common in dictatorships than in democracies. —Ian Buruma, New York Times Book Review, 17 Sept. 2006

Arrogance is, at once, what an athlete most needs and what fans least want to see. —Dan Le Batard, ESPN, 15 Mar. 2004

A British expat who could have stepped out of a Graham Greene plot, Twyman makes an improbable Jamaican hero. His self-assurance borders on arrogance, particularly when something is not done precisely the way he would do it himself. —Barry Estabrook, Gourmet, July 2003

Her arrogance has earned her a lot of enemies.

We were shocked by the arrogance of his comments.

Recent Examples on the Web

This standalone novel looks at the cult of celebrity, the bond among parents and children, entitlement and arrogance, all wrapped into a tightly wound plot that’s an evocative historical steeped in the Great Depression. — Oline H. Cogdill, Sun Sentinel, 1 Oct. 2026

The highest-wattage cast members are undoubtedly Miller and West, ideally chosen to exude effortless glam and rumpled arrogance, respectively. — Angie Han, HollywoodReporter, 30 Sep. 2026

Related Stories Cruise, declaiming every line, acting with blind bluster and a mean gleam of good-ol’-boy joy, makes Digger a walking cartoon — a larger-than-life satire of over-the-top American arrogance, like LBJ crossed with Foghorn Leghorn. — Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 29 Sep. 2026

What might seem arrogance in others feels merely reasonable coming from her. — Robert Lloyd, Los Angeles Times, 26 Aug. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English arrogaunce, errogaunce, borrowed from Anglo-French & Latin; Anglo-French arrogance, arrogaunce, borrowed from Latin arrogantia, noun derivative of arrogant-, arrogans "insolent, overbearing, arrogant"

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

arrogance

noun

ar·​ro·​gance ˈar-ə-gən(t)s 

: a sense of one's own importance that shows itself in a proud and insulting way