swaggered; swaggering
ˈswa-g(ə-)riŋ 
1
: to conduct oneself in an arrogant or superciliously pompous manner
especially
: to walk with an air of overbearing self-confidence
: to force by argument or threat : bully
Examples of swagger in a Sentence
He copped a plea, ratted out a dozen no-neck pals and swaggered off to prison, leaving South Beach temporarily without a pied piper.
—
Carl Hiaasen, New York Times Book Review, 22 Feb. 2009
So it is a fight rather than an argument, really—a fight over complexity versus ease, a fight that mostly mimics gang war, which is not so much a vigorous instance of manly bloodletting (though it is that too) as a dustup over prestige: who has the prior right to swagger in public.
—Cynthia Ozick, Harper's, April 2007
Sometimes he sauntered through the streets of the old town. He looked with awe at the students of the corps, their cheeks gashed and red, who swaggered about in their coloured caps.
—W. Somerset Maugham, Of Human Bondage, 1915
I, too, would swagger if I'd won first place in the bowling tournament.
hoping to impress the women at the bar, the young man confidently swaggered across the room
Carl Hiaasen, New York Times Book Review, 22 Feb. 2009
So it is a fight rather than an argument, really—a fight over complexity versus ease, a fight that mostly mimics gang war, which is not so much a vigorous instance of manly bloodletting (though it is that too) as a dustup over prestige: who has the prior right to swagger in public.
—Cynthia Ozick, Harper's, April 2007
Sometimes he sauntered through the streets of the old town. He looked with awe at the students of the corps, their cheeks gashed and red, who swaggered about in their coloured caps.
—W. Somerset Maugham, Of Human Bondage, 1915
I, too, would swagger if I'd won first place in the bowling tournament.
hoping to impress the women at the bar, the young man confidently swaggered across the room
Recent Examples on the Web
After all those swaggering herbal notes faded, tasters said Roku finished with breezy floral qualities—lavender and rose.
—Sam Stone, Bon Appetit Magazine, 12 May 2026
The advertisement opened with a backside shot of a man clothed in Levi’s jeans, a western shirt and leather gloves, swaggering up to a pair of saloon doors.
—Jack Armstrong, USA Today, 15 Apr. 2026
And in the nation’s third-largest city, home to one of the most rambunctious celebrations of the holiday, young partygoers were eager to swagger between bars and parties with the drinks, usually dyed kelly green.
—Alice Yin, Chicago Tribune, 17 Mar. 2026
Don the swaggering employee needs to learn a lesson about gender identity.
—Christopher Arnott, Hartford Courant, 15 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for swagger
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Sam Stone, Bon Appetit Magazine, 12 May 2026
The advertisement opened with a backside shot of a man clothed in Levi’s jeans, a western shirt and leather gloves, swaggering up to a pair of saloon doors.
—Jack Armstrong, USA Today, 15 Apr. 2026
And in the nation’s third-largest city, home to one of the most rambunctious celebrations of the holiday, young partygoers were eager to swagger between bars and parties with the drinks, usually dyed kelly green.
—Alice Yin, Chicago Tribune, 17 Mar. 2026
Don the swaggering employee needs to learn a lesson about gender identity.
—Christopher Arnott, Hartford Courant, 15 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for swagger
Cite this Entry
“Swagger.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/swagger. Accessed 11 Jun. 2026.
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