1
as in rhetoric
boastful speech or writing
his braggadocio hid the fact that he felt personally inadequate
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
2
as in braggart
someone who boasts
the swaggering braggadocio is a stock figure of American folklore, with Davy Crockett and Mike Fink being prime examples
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of braggadocio
Trump’s braggadocio State of the Union message about our surging economy and his compassionate ICE raids was the icing on the Circassian cake.
—
Voice Of The People, New York Daily News, 26 Feb. 2026
Sure enough, Son did indeed suffer another precipitous fall, though today is once again brimming with braggadocio.
—Charlie Campbell, Time, 24 Feb. 2026
The distortions of segregation in the South in the forties left their mark, to be sure, but behind his tropism for the limelight, underneath all the braggadocio that is mistaken for arrogance, lies Jesse Louis Jackson's greatest longing in life—the lust for legitimacy.
—Gail Sheehy, Vanity Fair, 20 Feb. 2026
Timmy’s Marty promotional tour was loud and brash — viral Zoom videos, Soulja Boy routines in Brazil, standing atop the Sphere in Las Vegas — and had a lot of people wondering if his decision to adopt a Marty Mauser-style braggadocio would ultimately hurt his chances to win over Oscar voters.
—Vulture Editors, Vulture, 12 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for braggadocio
Voice Of The People, New York Daily News, 26 Feb. 2026
Sure enough, Son did indeed suffer another precipitous fall, though today is once again brimming with braggadocio.
—Charlie Campbell, Time, 24 Feb. 2026
The distortions of segregation in the South in the forties left their mark, to be sure, but behind his tropism for the limelight, underneath all the braggadocio that is mistaken for arrogance, lies Jesse Louis Jackson's greatest longing in life—the lust for legitimacy.
—Gail Sheehy, Vanity Fair, 20 Feb. 2026
Timmy’s Marty promotional tour was loud and brash — viral Zoom videos, Soulja Boy routines in Brazil, standing atop the Sphere in Las Vegas — and had a lot of people wondering if his decision to adopt a Marty Mauser-style braggadocio would ultimately hurt his chances to win over Oscar voters.
—Vulture Editors, Vulture, 12 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for braggadocio
Recent Examples of Synonyms for braggadocio
Noun
-
Hyper-aggressive rhetoric on social media, political extremism, and the normalization of violence are certainly contributing factors.—
Andrew Cuomo,
New York Daily News,
2 May 2026
-
Perhaps, as more and more people on the right echo white-supremacist rhetoric, some lawmakers might actually just start saying the thing out loud, and the courts will have to act.—
Vann R. Newkirk II,
The Atlantic,
2 May 2026
Noun
-
Of the many incarnations of the narcissist, there is the braggart, and there is also the neurotic.—
Doreen St. Félix,
New Yorker,
6 Dec. 2025
-
Still, Kimmel never came off as a braggart.—
Ben Travers,
IndieWire,
24 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Humble brag; That turned out to be a stroke of genius on my part.—
Marc Silver,
NPR,
19 Apr. 2026
-
However, the new Master Suites may overtake Silvers in popularity; their 721-to-826 square feet include brag-worthy 270-degree views.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
15 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
The story is told from Dah’s perspective, as Jocelyn—who displays a quasi-mystical rapport with fighting cocks—suffers an emotional breakdown, putting their business and their lives in danger.—
The New Yorker,
The New Yorker,
26 July 2024
-
The former became fighting cocks and the latter became sows.—
Matthew Gavin Frank,
Harper's Magazine,
6 June 2023
Noun
-
Brian Gibson’s gangrenous bass riffs and gibbering, muffled vocals have even more gonzo energy than usual, while Chippendale mixes bombast and finesse with his customary flair.—
Reed Jackson,
SPIN,
24 Apr. 2026
-
Eye-rolling over Gorka’s bombast has given way to anxiety about the administration’s preparedness to identify and stop major plots.—
Hannah Allam,
ProPublica,
21 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Much of that singularity was centered in McCarthy’s prose, which ricocheted—sometimes gracefully, sometimes jarringly—between gruff matter-of-factness and soaring, biblical grandiloquence.—
Alex Shephard,
The New Republic,
13 June 2023
-
Several of them can fly, and all have at least a touch of grandiloquence to them.—
Michael Nordine,
Variety,
11 Aug. 2022
Noun
-
Much of the chatter seems to be more about the desperation to complete a first double over Liverpool in a decade.—
Chris McKenna,
New York Times,
4 May 2026
-
Despite a L’Oréal sponsorship this time around, there isn’t much makeup chatter in The Devil Wears Prada 2, either—though Hathaway’s near-identical face at 43 is an aesthetic triumph.—
Faran Krentcil,
Allure,
4 May 2026
Noun
-
In addition to Molyneux’s usual game design bluster, though, was a newfound enthusiasm for the idea of making money from simply playing a game.—
ArsTechnica,
ArsTechnica,
27 Apr. 2026
-
Some five years later, amid a war between the US, Israel, and Iran, these islands dotted across the Strait of Hormuz are caught in a different kind of bluster.—
Adam Pourahmadi,
CNN Money,
22 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Braggadocio.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/braggadocio. Accessed 8 May. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
