boast

noun

\ ˈbōst

Definition of boast

(Entry 1 of 3)

1 : a statement expressing excessive pride in oneself : the act or an instance of boasting (see boast entry 2) : brag It may sound like a boast, but I truly am very wealthy.

2 : a cause for pride

boast

verb (1)

boasted; boasting; boasts

Definition of boast (Entry 2 of 3)

intransitive verb

1 : to praise oneself extravagantly in speech : speak of oneself with excessive pride boasting about her accomplishments

2 archaic : glory, exult

transitive verb

1 : to speak of or assert with excessive pride He liked to boast that he was the richest man in town.

2a : to possess and often call attention to (something that is a source of pride) boasts a new stadium

b : have, contain a room boasting no more than a desk and a chair

boast

verb (2)

boasted; boasting; boasts

Definition of boast (Entry 3 of 3)

transitive verb

: to shape (stone) roughly in sculpture and stonecutting as a preliminary to finer work

Other Words from boast Synonyms Choose the Right Synonym More Example Sentences Learn More about boast

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Other Words from boast

Noun

boastful \ ˈbōst-fəl

\ adjective

boastfully \ ˈbōst-fə-lē

\ adverb

boastfulness noun

Verb (1)

boaster noun

Choose the Right Synonym for boast

Verb (1)

boast, brag, vaunt, crow mean to express pride in oneself or one's accomplishments. boast often suggests ostentation and exaggeration boasts of every trivial success , but it may imply a claiming with proper and justifiable pride. the town boasts one of the best museums in the area brag suggests crudity and artlessness in glorifying oneself. bragging of their exploits vaunt usually connotes more pomp and bombast than boast and less crudity or naïveté than brag. vaunted his country's military might crow usually implies exultant boasting or bragging. crowed after winning the championship

Examples of boast in a Sentence

Noun

When he says he's the richest man in town, he's not just making an idle boast. We were offended by his boast that he would easily beat us. The museum's proudest boast is its collection of rare gems.

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

An eye toward his 2020 campaign, President Donald Trump is turning to a familiar playbook of exaggerated boasts about economic performance and overdrawn complaints about a race tilted against him. — Calvin Woodward, Fortune, "Fact Checking Trump's Claims on the Economy and 2020 Election," 17 June 2019 The release notes for 6.3.0 boast of several performance improvements related to loading and saving documents in Writer and Calc. — Jim Salter, Ars Technica, "A look at LibreOffice’s new 6.3.0 “fresh” release," 13 Aug. 2019 The Emerson poll, like most others, doesn't back up that boast. — Dallas News, "New poll: Biden leads O'Rourke in Texas presidential primary, race against Sen. John Cornyn wide open," 6 Aug. 2019 Jacqueline lived here with a host family — a discreet plaque on an exterior wall boasts of the building’s illustrious former tenant — sharing a rambling, bourgeois apartment with seven other people. — New York Times, "A Year in Paris That Transformed Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis," 23 June 2019 President Trump claims trade wars are easy to win, but that boast looks worse than ever amid the financial carnage from his latest threat of tariffs on Chinese goods. — NBC News, "Trump's teleprompter temperament isn't the message — what comes next is," 6 Aug. 2019 Indeed, Iacocca made that particular boast at a time when the Detroit Three companies — Ford, General Motors and Chrsyler — still owned more than 80% of the domestic auto market. — John Gallagher, Detroit Free Press, "Lee Iacocca wasn't perfect: 3 times the auto icon got it all wrong," 6 July 2019 Produced in large part by Tainy and Sky, who also worked on each artist’s impressive 2018 solo album, the songs are sleek and propulsive, with glistening melodic hooks that make even macho boasts feel sensual. — Mikael Wood, latimes.com, "Review: J Balvin and Bad Bunny are a Latin-pop dream team on ‘Oasis’," 1 July 2019 There is enough meat here to make a museum, and plenty of boast-worthy varieties. — Kara Baskin, BostonGlobe.com, "All the meat you could eat and much more at the revived Moody’s Delicatessen & Provisions," 27 June 2019

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb

Batsios said the restaurant will boast 3,000 square feet and can seat up to 50 diners. — Rebecca Hennes, Houston Chronicle, "Popular Katy gas station restaurant Pappa Gyros announces second, stand-alone location," 9 Sep. 2019 Given that the program already boasts elite freshmen Mase Funa and Kayvon Thibodeaux, the foundational pieces for a dominant front seven are in place. — oregonlive, "Keith Brown, Noah Sewell, elite linebacker prospects, bond during Oregon Ducks visit," 9 Sep. 2019 Many companies have cozied up to Washington, but none have accrued the kind of presence and reach that Amazon will soon boast. — Allan Smith, NBC News, "King of The Hill: How Amazon and Jeff Bezos made Washington a second home," 6 Sep. 2019 Performances at the annual awards show often boast an eclectic mix of rock, hip-hop, pop and contemporary acts as well as artists in the Southern Gospel, bluegrass, country, and worship genres. — Annie Reuter, Billboard, "Kirk Franklin, TobyMac and Hillsong Worship to Perform at 2019 Dove Awards," 27 Aug. 2019 The company boasts fresh tea brewed every four hours; pearl (bubbles) cooked to perfection every four hours; tea sourced from the finest Taiwan tea estates; and strict quality control for all ingredients. — Erika Butler, baltimoresun.com, "9,500-square-foot liquor store among businesses coming to Tollgate Marketplace in Bel Air," 21 Aug. 2019 Michael Zaleski, the chief executive officer at Riverfront Recapture, said Hartford boasts one of the top 10 dragon boat races in the country with more than 1,400 participants on the 71 teams. — Christopher Keating, courant.com, "71 teams celebrate annual Dragon Boat Festival in Hartford," 17 Aug. 2019 In a day and age when many schools in the Power 5 can’t give away their season tickets, UCF has sold out its allotment, boasts more season-ticket holders than FSU and has created a formal waiting list. — Mike Bianchi, orlandosentinel.com, "UCF’s Danny White: ‘We could schedule 49ers, Dolphins and Bears and still not get in 4-team playoff’ | Commentary," 13 Aug. 2019 Uganda hosts the highest number of refugees in Africa and boasts one of the highest refugee employment rates, at 37%, right behind the United States at 40%. — David Miliband For Cnn Business Perspectives, CNN, "Refugee women face unequal access to jobs. Hiring them could boost global GDP by $1.4 trillion," 13 Aug. 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'boast.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.