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

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 Each outrageous and outraged boast raises the stakes — the possibility of death in the desert, the callousness of current governmental policies — while capturing the resilience and tragedy of the immigrant existence at our Southern border. — José Olivarez, New York Times, "My Family Never Finished Migrating We Just Stopped," 20 June 2019 Not only does Andretti Autosport boast resources that exceed those of most every other program in the paddock, but his No. — Jim Ayello, Indianapolis Star, "As Alex Rossi, Andretti chases IndyCar championship, his status holds key to Silly Season," 19 June 2019 That boast has helped entice over $350bn of foreign investment in the past seven years. — The Economist, "A former official casts doubt on India’s GDP figures," 15 June 2019 All three boast impressive records in front of goal at youth level and, on paper, there isn't a whole lot to separate them in this category. — SI.com, "Eddie Nketiah, Troy Parrott & Mason Greenwood: Assessing Who Is the Best Premier League Prospect," 22 July 2019

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb

That’s especially true in California, where countless ballot propositions supposedly put up by civic-minded individuals or boasting of public benefits have turned out to have corporate pedigrees. — Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, "Column: SoCal Gas accused of setting up an ‘astro-turf’ group to plead its case to regulators," 8 Aug. 2019 Before Tuesday’s start, Melvin had boasted of Manaea’s velocity and command. — John Shea, SFChronicle.com, "A’s shut down pitcher Sean Manaea with side soreness," 4 Aug. 2019 Nix, tweedy and bespectacled, is eventually brought down when undercover footage of him boasting of using bribery stings and blackmail on opposing candidates went public in 2018. — Ty Burr, BostonGlobe.com, "‘The Great Hack’ looks at how history was changed, and Tarantino changes history," 1 Aug. 2019 Netanyahu frequently boasts of his diplomatic skills and close relationships with his counterparts abroad. — Sam Sokol, sun-sentinel.com, "As Russia cracks down on dissent, Netanyahu campaign ads feature Putin," 31 July 2019 While Apple Music and iCloud were not discussed at length during the call with investors, Apple executives boasted of a 50% increase in monthly users of the Apple TV app YOY. — Samuel Axon, Ars Technica, "Virtually every Apple business grew in every region this quarter—except the iPhone," 30 July 2019 In contrast to Jackson's fervent liberalism, Wilder backed capital punishment and right-to-work laws, earned plaudits from conservative commentators, and boasted of his refusal to close his state's budget shortfall by raising taxes. — Steve Kornacki, NBC News, "1992: Bill Clinton builds a winning coalition, Jackson is diminished," 29 July 2019 However, due to a combination of a transfer embargo and a number of relatively high-profile flops, the Blues can boast of just three centre forwards in their senior squad. — SI.com, "Premier League Fantasy Football: 10 Under the Radar Picks for Your 2019/20 Squad," 25 July 2019 Some restaurants boast of using organic tomatoes in their homemade sauce, while others rely on cans of Stanislaus. — Jason Diamond, Bon Appétit, "Chicago’s Real Signature Pizza Is Crispy, Crunchy, and Nothing Like Deep Dish," 22 July 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.