1
as in to horse around
to engage in attention-getting playful or boisterous behavior
the athletes warmed up, happily showing off for the crowd before the match officially started
Synonyms & Similar Words
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2
as in to display
to present so as to invite notice or attention
she just wants to show off her new jewelry
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in hotshot
informal + disapproving
a person who tries to impress other people with his or her abilities or possessions
Related Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of show off
Vinson Cunningham, New Yorker, 24 Jan. 2026
Names of contestants go into a hat, and contestants get to show off their skills to an audience that, if done successfully, might be craving more than a slice of pie.
—Charlie Vargas, Daily News, 23 Jan. 2026
Betsy Cribb Watson, Southern Living, 11 May 2025
Otherwise, this is a visually stunning chassis that will satisfy patient-building component show-offs.
—PCMAG, 1 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for show off
Verb
Vance showed off a way with words quite similar to Leavitt’s, and to Trump’s.
—Vinson Cunningham, New Yorker, 24 Jan. 2026
Names of contestants go into a hat, and contestants get to show off their skills to an audience that, if done successfully, might be craving more than a slice of pie.
—Charlie Vargas, Daily News, 23 Jan. 2026
Noun
In This Article Take It Easy With Greens Pick a Combo With Staying Power
Rely On Dependable Winners
The Three Rules of Container TLC
These summer show-off container gardens will brighten up any porch or patio all season long—even in the Southern heat.
—Betsy Cribb Watson, Southern Living, 11 May 2025
Otherwise, this is a visually stunning chassis that will satisfy patient-building component show-offs.
—PCMAG, 1 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for show off
Recent Examples of Synonyms for show off
Verb
-
In April 2020, Iglesias shared a video of him horsing around with Lucy and Nicholas as the pair attempted to climb on his back for a ride.—
Andrea Wurzburger,
PEOPLE,
19 Jan. 2026
-
At this point in time, my little AI company, a lean and mean group of passionate believers, is horsing around fine-tuning the product, living on a couple of angel investments, where a 10X return on few million dollars is very satisfying, not only to the angel, but also to the employees.—
Neil Senturia,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
6 Oct. 2025
Verb
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It is made up, with the exception of a few old heads, of young players rich in potential but prone to the type of inconsistency displayed by the 18-year-old Greek forward.—
Andy Naylor,
New York Times,
28 Jan. 2026
-
Against Gauff, Svitolina displayed relentless aggression, attacking the American’s faltering forehand.—
Merlisa Lawrence Corbett,
Forbes.com,
27 Jan. 2026
Noun
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There's macho panache and white-knuckle action sequences aplenty as Pitt's eccentric Formula 1 veteran plays reluctant mentor to a hotshot rookie (Damson Idris).—
Brian Truitt,
USA Today,
22 Jan. 2026
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Anatomy Of An Alibi by Ashley Elston Aubrey Price assumes the identity of out-of-towner Camille Bayliss to uncover dark secrets about Camille’s husband, hotshot lawyer Ben, but their plan spirals out of control when Ben is found murdered.—
Kait Hanson,
Southern Living,
10 Jan. 2026
Verb
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By the third period, with his nose cut up, Kesselring was on the ice in the final minute of the game, helping to get it to overtime.—
Matthew Fairburn,
New York Times,
17 Jan. 2026
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To meet that goal, the grantmaker will cut up to 500 of its 2,375 staff positions by 2030, including some open roles that may remain unfilled.—
Stephanie Beasley,
Fortune,
14 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Professionals are implicitly urged to respond faster, compress the calendar and add more tracking to show work in motion.—
Dilan Gomih,
Forbes.com,
29 Jan. 2026
-
Earnings beat despite falling car sales The earnings report showed a company in transition.—
Sujita Sinha,
Interesting Engineering,
29 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
Broncos Country believes in this team, but the wise guys do not.—
Troy Renck,
Denver Post,
8 Dec. 2025
-
Your corner defined you — wise guys as well as cops.—
Howie Carr,
Boston Herald,
6 Dec. 2025
Verb
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Not too long ago, artificial intelligence was more or less a science project in which data scientists and developers fooled around with one-off small or test projects.—
Joe McKendrick,
Forbes.com,
26 Jan. 2026
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Gisin hopes that by fooling around with measurements of these more exotic states, physicists will come to better understand the role of measurement in general.—
Quanta Magazine,
Quanta Magazine,
8 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
The current scenario exhibits characteristics of both—not as drastic as the 77% crash of 2022, yet the institutional de-risking reflects similar structural challenges from that period.—
Trefis Team,
Forbes.com,
26 Jan. 2026
-
The newborn is the first primate born at the Bronx Zoo’s new immersive World of Darkness exhibit, the WCS said.—
Nicholas Rice,
PEOPLE,
26 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Show off.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/show%20off. Accessed 31 Jan. 2026.
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