1
as in arrogance
an exaggerated sense of one's importance that shows itself in the making of excessive or unjustified claims
everyone took her ingrained pretentiousness into account when considering her statements
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in ostentation
excessive or unnecessary display
the sheer pretentiousness of the debutante's wedding
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in affectation
the quality or state of appearing or trying to appear more important or more valuable than is the case
the utter pretentiousness of the movie is matched only by the incomprehensibility of its story
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of pretentiousness
Advertisement Jones uses his antihero’s blunt self-appraisals to avoid the pretentiousness endemic to stories about artists.
—
Judy Berman, Time, 2 June 2026
There's no pretentiousness or rigid formality, but the service, food, and wine are top-notch.
—Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 26 May 2026
The lack of pretentiousness signals something about who’s welcome there.
—Zach Helfand, New Yorker, 29 Nov. 2025
There’s a pretentiousness that begins to show itself as folks get more comfortable.
—Victoria Uwumarogie, Essence, 20 Oct. 2025
Coleman found no pretentiousness in Trafford, and he was not perturbed by the drop in facilities compared to the Etihad Campus.
—Jordan Campbell, New York Times, 9 Aug. 2025
Judy Berman, Time, 2 June 2026
There's no pretentiousness or rigid formality, but the service, food, and wine are top-notch.
—Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 26 May 2026
The lack of pretentiousness signals something about who’s welcome there.
—Zach Helfand, New Yorker, 29 Nov. 2025
There’s a pretentiousness that begins to show itself as folks get more comfortable.
—Victoria Uwumarogie, Essence, 20 Oct. 2025
Coleman found no pretentiousness in Trafford, and he was not perturbed by the drop in facilities compared to the Etihad Campus.
—Jordan Campbell, New York Times, 9 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pretentiousness
Noun
-
His mixture of insecurity and arrogance was eye-catching.—
PhotoVogue,
Vogue,
11 June 2026
-
Early on, the client read his directness as arrogance.—
Luis Peralta,
Forbes.com,
11 June 2026
Noun
-
The mansion, often considered a monument to Roaring ‘20s ostentation, stretches from the Intracoastal to the Atlantic Ocean.—
Miami Herald Archives,
Miami Herald,
22 Feb. 2026
-
The characteristics of this aesthetic begin with simple colors that evoke understated elegance—not ostentation.—
Kristine Gill,
Better Homes & Gardens,
3 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
The band sets aside the winks and retro affectations for something unadorned and honest.—
Sarah Grant,
Rolling Stone,
19 Aug. 2025
-
The scenic appeal is undeniable, nature’s majestic prose both frames and dwarfs the tumultuous affectations of the characters.—
Holly Jones,
Variety,
11 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
In a crew filled with people convinced of the superiority of their own methods, Cooper just wants to look at peacocks, call his grandma, and engage in some PG-13 flirting with fellow innocent oddball Kat.—
Rafaela Bassili,
Vulture,
16 June 2026
-
The successful test not only demonstrates the maturity of the MICA NG program but also highlights France’s commitment to maintaining technological superiority in the rapidly evolving domain of aerial warfare.—
Prabhat Ranjan Mishra,
Interesting Engineering,
7 June 2026
Noun
-
There aren’t crowds of excited supporters or the pomp of champagne glasses and white tablecloths.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
26 May 2026
-
But the Dodgers scored a run off Mason Miller (introduced with pomp and video flames on the scoreboard as ‘The Reaper’) in the ninth inning and beat him and the San Diego Padres, 5-4, on Tuesday night.—
Bill Plunkett,
Oc Register,
20 May 2026
Noun
-
There is something all too American, Baker argues, about believing that bucolic scenery and bourgeois pretensions can keep the repressed and foundational histories of this country’s utmost oppressions at bay.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
4 June 2026
-
Such pretensions to perfection are partly what make AI dangerous.—
Elizabeth Bruenig,
The Atlantic,
27 May 2026
Noun
-
These flourishes, recalling New York’s Jazz Age flamboyance, give the vast interior its fizz — and will inevitably have value engineers salivating to trim, slice, and simplify.—
Justin Davidson,
Curbed,
8 June 2026
-
Nobody wants to hear this — not Eisenhower, not Krick and definitely not Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery (Damian Lewis, leaning into the flamboyance).—
ABC News,
ABC News,
27 May 2026
Noun
-
Mayim Bialik made her Big Bang Theory debut on season 3 as Amy, a neurobiologist who joined the gang under the pretense of being a potential love match for Sheldon via an online dating site.—
Grace Gavilanes,
PEOPLE,
15 June 2026
-
This year, McVay avoided any pretense of suspense.—
Gary Klein,
Los Angeles Times,
11 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Pretentiousness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pretentiousness. Accessed 18 Jun. 2026.
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