Synonyms of highfalutin

highfalutin

adjective

ˌhī-fə-ˈlü-tᵊn 

variants also hifalutin

1

as in rhetoric

full of fine words and fancy expressions

his highfalutin paean to the working class failed to win over a crowd that wanted to hear down-to-earth proposals for economic relief

Synonyms & Similar Words

• rhetoric
• rhetorical
• ornate
• grandiloquent
• purple
• eloquent
• florid
• high-sounding
• high-flown
• flowery
• pretentious
• grandiose
• aureate
• excessive
• inflated
• pompous
• fancy-pants
• boastful
• bombastic
• stilted
• magnific
• bloated
• fulsome
• flattering
• bookish
• lofty
• affected
• learned
• elevated
• inkhorn

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• prosaic
• simple
• direct
• plain
• matter-of-fact
• unpoetic
• straightforward
• lean
• spare
• unadorned
• bald
• stark
• natural
• unpretentious
• unaffected
• plainspoken

2

as in arrogant

having a feeling of superiority that shows itself in an overbearing attitude

her highfalutin relatives from New York made the snide remark that her little house "has that lived-in look"

Synonyms & Similar Words

• arrogant
• important
• superior
• presuming
• pretentious
• high-and-mighty
• uppity
• supercilious
• cavalier
• bumptious
• imperious
• haughty
• pompous
• sniffy
• assumptive
• uppish
• masterful
• presumptuous
• chesty
• high-handed
• huffy
• smug
• lofty
• high-hat
• dominant
• authoritarian
• domineering
• overweening
• toplofty
• toploftical
• lordly
• huffish
• peremptory
• proud
• pontifical
• patronizing
• snooty
• self-assertive
• snobbish
• snobby
• condescending
• impudent
• saucy
• magisterial
• dominating
• egotistical
• vain
• self-asserting
• bossy
• vainglorious
• bombastic
• stiff-necked
• pontificating
• boastful
• disdainful
• egoistical
• egocentric
• hubristic
• cocky
• blusterous
• narcissistic
• conceited
• impertinent
• swaggering
• blustery
• egotistic
• egoistic
• braggy
• immodest
• complacent
• prideful
• uninhibited
• stuck-up
• braggart
• bragging
• self-complacent
• extraverted
• self-flattering
• self-satisfied
• self-centered
• brash
• extroverted
• self-conceited
• self-promoting
• self-affected
• unreserved
• orgulous
• self-pleased
• forward
• self-loving
• self-applauding

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• modest
• humble
• unpretentious
• lowly
• timid
• bashful
• sheepish
• shy
• diffident
• subdued
• mousy
• passive
• introverted
• demure
• deferential
• shrinking
• unassuming
• meek
• unobtrusive
• compliant
• unarrogant
• unassertive
• acquiescent
• submissive
• mousey
• quiet
• yielding
• unaggressive
• overmodest
• self-critical
• self-doubting
• reserved
• cringing
• retiring
• cowering

3

as in superior

having or displaying feelings of scorn for what is regarded as beneath oneself

refused to be intimidated by the highfalutin manner of the sales staff in the fashionable boutique

Synonyms & Similar Words

• superior
• proud
• arrogant
• smug
• cavalier
• haughty
• lofty
• disdainful
• prideful
• confident
• lordly
• pretentious
• egotistical
• snobbish
• domineering
• uppity
• vainglorious
• supercilious
• selfish
• conceited
• high-sounding
• vain
• pompous
• egotistic
• self-important
• egoistic
• important
• condescending
• bombastic
• patronizing
• complacent
• overbearing
• dominating
• sniffy
• cocky
• boastful
• impudent
• saucy
• presumptuous
• brassy
• stuck-up
• self-satisfied
• self-contented
• bold
• overconfident
• swaggering
• cheeky
• overweening
• self-conceited
• egocentric
• audacious
• peremptory
• bloated
• impertinent
• self-assertive
• cocksure
• brash
• bossy
• imperious
• self-glorifying
• magisterial
• high-handed
• masterful
• sure
• self-assured
• self-centered
• forward
• self-confident
• presuming

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• modest
• humble
• lowly
• unassuming
• unpretentious
• homely
• meek
• timid
• unpretending
• demure
• bashful
• shy
• diffident
• retiring
• deferential
• compliant
• ingratiating
• unassertive
• passive
• apologetic
• acquiescent
• submissive
• quiet
• yielding
• resigned
• shrinking
• unobtrusive
• subdued
• reserved
• self-doubting
• cringing
• cowering

4

as in smug

self-consciously trying to present an appearance of grandeur or importance

"fine Southern cuisine" sounds a bit highfalutin for a barbecue shack

Synonyms & Similar Words

• arrogant
• smug
• pretentious
• high-minded
• grandiose
• important
• ostentatious
• pompous
• cavalier
• la-di-da
• lah-di-dah
• la-de-da
• superior
• aggressive
• snippy
• lah-dee-dah
• lah-de-dah
• affected
• vain
• sure
• high-sounding
• high-flown
• proud
• grandiloquent
• egotistical
• high-and-mighty
• uppity
• high-toned
• vainglorious
• sententious
• bumptious
• hoity-toity
• self-important
• bold
• snobbish
• egoistical
• snobby
• conceited
• rude
• supercilious
• confident
• imperious
• egotistic
• presumptuous
• haughty
• high-handed
• egoistic
• self-centered
• complacent
• high-hat
• prideful
• disdainful
• self-aggrandizing
• overweening
• boastful
• impudent
• self-complacent
• self-satisfied
• showy
• glitzy
• gaudy
• brassy
• airy
• self-dramatizing
• self-conceited
• cocky
• self-glorifying
• self-obsessed
• cheeky
• insolent
• flashy
• stuck-up
• bragging
• self-assured
• self-promoting
• flamboyant
• lordly
• garish
• audacious
• self-assertive
• self-pleased
• self-confident
• assertive
• self-asserting
• splashy
• braggart
• flaunting
• forward

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• modest
• unpretentious
• humble
• unassuming
• homely
• lowly
• down-to-earth
• meek
• passive
• retiring
• timid
• quiet
• shy
• bashful
• unassertive
• demure
• reserved
• mousy
• diffident
• mousey
• overmodest

Examples of highfalutin in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Offerman brings a great counterpoint to these highfalutin words with his innate buff-dude physicality. —Bethy Squires, Vulture, 19 Apr. 2024

The way his vivid, relatable characters discuss the big questions, with so much soul and hang-looseness, free from any highfalutin airs, has long been something of a north star for me as a movie lover and as a talker. —David Marchese, New York Times, 1 June 2024

Most important to Mongers' co-founders, though, was to reimagine the highfalutin nature of wine, cheese and other delicacies into a format that is laid back. —Detroit Free Press, 6 Mar. 2024

In space, with one’s life and perhaps mankind’s existence on the line, survival might just come down to who can best wield a kitchen knife or random tool rather than some highfalutin laser. —Brian Truitt, USA TODAY, 17 Jan. 2024