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Synonym Chooser

How is the word ostentatious different from other adjectives like it?

The words pretentious and showy are common synonyms of ostentatious. While all three words mean "given to excessive outward display," ostentatious stresses vainglorious display or parade.

the ostentatious summer homes of the rich

When is it sensible to use pretentious instead of ostentatious?

The synonyms pretentious and ostentatious are sometimes interchangeable, but pretentious implies an appearance of importance not justified by the thing's value or the person's standing.

a pretentious parade of hard words

When could showy be used to replace ostentatious?

The words showy and ostentatious are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, showy implies an imposing or striking appearance but usually suggests cheapness or poor taste.

the performers' showy costumes

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 ostentatious The aesthetic is contemporary African; more grounded than glamourous, more connected to the landscape than ostentatious. Sarah Kingdom, Forbes.com, 28 Aug. 2025 London’s theft of a horse became part of a larger narrative of being flashy, ostentatious, too smart for his own good. Bitter Kalli august 19, Literary Hub, 19 Aug. 2025 The affair led to two marriages for the couple, 11 films, and an ostentatious jet-setting lifestyle that involved furs, jewelry, yachts, and glamorous travel. Maureen Lee Lenker Published, EW.com, 14 Aug. 2025 Either way, The Lowdown finds Harjo dipping into pleasantly familiar reservoirs of fiction in which the protagonists know how to take a constant beating, the malefactors are all suspiciously verbose and ostentatious hats abound. Daniel Fienberg, HollywoodReporter, 3 Sep. 2019 See All Example Sentences for ostentatious
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ostentatious
Adjective
  • This discourse only got louder during minicamp when he was called out for his physical appearance and route running.
    Kevin McCormick, MSNBC Newsweek, 7 Sep. 2025
  • As Anisimova kept making things close again, and the crowd kept getting loud, Sabalenka reminded herself to focus on herself.
    Jason Ma, Fortune, 7 Sep. 2025
Adjective
  • These early years emphasized goofiness, offensiveness, and mocking arrogant celebrities who pushed their platforms at award shows.
    Chris Yogerst, HollywoodReporter, 30 Aug. 2025
  • The announcement was made during a backstage segment involving NXT General Manager Ava and the arrogant superstar Lexis King.
    Andrew Ravens‎, MSNBC Newsweek, 25 Aug. 2025
Adjective
  • During recent surveys for these noisy lizards in Namibia, researchers found five species new to science, according to the study.
    Irene Wright, Miami Herald, 4 Sep. 2025
  • The Aventho 200’s microphone uses Qualcomm’s cVc technology to ensure high-quality audio on phone calls and video meetings, even in noisy environments such as crowded trains or busy airports.
    Mark Sparrow, Forbes.com, 3 Sep. 2025
Adjective
  • Das maintains a nuanced view of his role as a comedian, rejecting grandiose notions about speaking truth to power.
    Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 3 Sep. 2025
  • This was not a hoax, exactly; Baron makes a convincing case that Lowell believed passionately in his grandiose claims, and that many members of the public wanted to believe in them, at a time of disorienting change.
    Jon Allsop, New Yorker, 29 Aug. 2025
Adjective
  • What to expect Vaughn said the boutique has something for everyone with dress sizes ranging from zero to 28 and a variety of styles from short and simple to long and extravagant.
    Emma George-Griffin, Freep.com, 6 Sep. 2025
  • As the dust settles on another chaotic summer of extravagant Premier League spending, there’s time to take a step back.
    Chris Weatherspoon, New York Times, 5 Sep. 2025
Adjective
  • Kerouac’s pretentious hitchhiker’s guide lacked the panache, humor, and focus of this one by Douglas Adams.
    Brittany Allen, Literary Hub, 8 Sep. 2025
  • Swift making herself into a tortured poet trying to outdo a pretentious, typewriter-wielding ex.
    Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 4 Sep. 2025
Adjective
  • That gaudy slash line is almost solely responsible for Alcántara being the September call-up over top outfield prospect Owen Caissie.
    Andrew Wright, MSNBC Newsweek, 2 Sep. 2025
  • In many of these suburbs, the prevalence of tearing down perfectly sound old single-family homes in order to build often-gaudy new structures has led to proposals to incentivize keeping more of the old housing stock, using tax breaks and other means.
    The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 1 Sep. 2025
Adjective
  • Guigal’s strategy isn’t built on pompous conservatism, but in long-term thinking.
    Paul Caputo, Forbes.com, 22 Aug. 2025
  • Louis Partridge will take on the scheming Mr Wickham, with Jamie Demetriou playing the pompous Mr Collins, Daryl McCormack as Jane’s beloved Mr Bingley, Siena Kelly as his sister Caroline and Shaw as the fearsome Lady Catherine de Bourg.
    Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 15 Aug. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Ostentatious.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ostentatious. Accessed 11 Sep. 2025.

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