as in rhetoric
marked by the use of impressive-sounding but mostly meaningless words and phrases
a bombastic speech intended to impress the voters in her congressional district
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Recent Examples of bombastic
Among the 100 outfits on display are some bombastic, kite-like contraptions, bulbous pileups of fabric donuts, and a Chewbacca-esque cape-cum-sarcophogus.
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Miles Socha, Footwear News, 25 June 2025
Levin’s lunch with Trump is a testament to the bombastic radio and TV host’s wide influence on the right.
—Brian Stelter, CNN Money, 18 June 2025
Months later, Musk's bombastic plan to slash the bureaucracy has been blunted by a flurry of legal challenges that allege DOGE overstepped its authority, circumvented privacy laws, and disregarded protocols for shrinking the workforce.
—Stephen Fowler, NPR, 16 June 2025
Brewer’s Duke exudes a bombastic attitude with a self importance that exceeds his actual necessity outside of his finances.
—Rick Mauch, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 11 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for bombastic
Miles Socha, Footwear News, 25 June 2025
Levin’s lunch with Trump is a testament to the bombastic radio and TV host’s wide influence on the right.
—Brian Stelter, CNN Money, 18 June 2025
Months later, Musk's bombastic plan to slash the bureaucracy has been blunted by a flurry of legal challenges that allege DOGE overstepped its authority, circumvented privacy laws, and disregarded protocols for shrinking the workforce.
—Stephen Fowler, NPR, 16 June 2025
Brewer’s Duke exudes a bombastic attitude with a self importance that exceeds his actual necessity outside of his finances.
—Rick Mauch, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 11 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for bombastic
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bombastic
rhetorical
Adjective
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Trump’s rhetorical bombing raids against Fed Chair Jerome Powell could backfire spectacularly on Asia.—
William Pesek,
Forbes.com,
26 June 2025
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There are two different models for dealing with this reality, approaches that can broadly be described as strategic and rhetorical.—
Ruth Marcus,
New Yorker,
25 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Bombastic.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bombastic. Accessed 5 Jul. 2025.
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