as in to show off
to engage in attention-getting playful or boisterous behavior
the gymnast was showboating for the cameras when she lost her balance and fell
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of showboat
Kevin Rector, Los Angeles Times, 21 Nov. 2024
Fonseca found Barbosa to be a showboat on Instagram, sure, but also unfailingly polite and generous.
—Lauren Smiley, WIRED, 10 July 2024
John Shea, San Francisco Chronicle, 16 Apr. 2022
But that was neither showboating nor talking trash.
—Dalton Ross, EW.com, 1 Apr. 2020
See All Example Sentences for showboat
Verb
Still, the factor that may have been most harmful were his relationships with fellow Republican lawmakers, who regarded him as an empty showboat willing to hurt the party to gain attention.
—Kevin Rector, Los Angeles Times, 21 Nov. 2024
Fonseca found Barbosa to be a showboat on Instagram, sure, but also unfailingly polite and generous.
—Lauren Smiley, WIRED, 10 July 2024
Noun
Don’t showboat around the bases.
—John Shea, San Francisco Chronicle, 16 Apr. 2022
But that was neither showboating nor talking trash.
—Dalton Ross, EW.com, 1 Apr. 2020
See All Example Sentences for showboat
Recent Examples of Synonyms for showboat
Verb
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But outgoing Milwaukee Symphony Music Director Ken-David Masur has packed his concluding season here with major choral works to show off the Milwaukee Symphony Chorus in its 50th year.—
Jim Higgins,
jsonline.com,
5 Sep. 2025
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There will be an array of events the weekend of September 26 to 28 at the Joseph—from a cooking class led by Top Chef champ Mei Lin to wine tastings to a cocktail mixology course—with the tentpoles being a pair of dinners that will show off very different styles of cooking.—
Nicole Hoey,
Robb Report,
4 Sep. 2025
Noun
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What exactly is a cowboy breakfast biscuit?—
Kimberly Holland,
Southern Living,
7 Sep. 2025
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Bighorn Scenic Byway Wyoming Embrace your inner cowboy with a drive along the Bighorn Scenic Byway, which takes you over the crest of the Big Horn Mountains and to spots like the city of Sheridan, where New West meets Old West in the historic downtown.—
Beth Luberecki,
USA Today,
6 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Born Drew Desbordes, Druski, 30, is a long way from the kid who spent his time at the dinner table cutting up.—
CT Jones,
Rolling Stone,
4 Sep. 2025
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Nobody wants to get their hands cut up by a downward moving blade.—
Vilius Kavaliauskas,
Forbes.com,
3 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Rather than rely on simplistic caricature, Jude tells this story of Eastern European economic expansion, berserk nationalism, and the inability to create meaningful change with crushing relatability.—
Jill Goldsmith,
Deadline,
5 Aug. 2025
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What followed was a moment of berserk that spiraled into this career-altering incident.—
Devlina Sarkar,
MSNBC Newsweek,
16 July 2025
Verb
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Running or horsing around with sparklers can also cause injuries and burns when users trip and fall.—
Justin Laube,
EverydayHealth.com,
2 July 2025
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Heath Ryan, who represented Australia in dressage at the 2008 Olympics, can be seen in the video – which the rider said is about two years old – hitting a horse around 40 times.—
Matias Grez,
CNN Money,
13 June 2025
Verb
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And there are the neighbors who revel at the many nicknames coined for the spot.—
Lauren Brensel,
Sun Sentinel,
17 July 2025
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Discover the city's renowned artisans, who specialize in crafts from gold leaf to pottery, and visit a traditional geisha house to drink sake and revel with Japan’s most delightful entertainers.—
Mark Lakin,
Travel + Leisure,
9 July 2025
Verb
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Send any news, comments, Meta predictions, or Costco hotdogs to talk@qz.com.—
Francisco Velasquez,
Quartz,
3 Feb. 2025
Verb
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Gisin hopes that by fooling around with measurements of these more exotic states, physicists will come to better understand the role of measurement in general.—
Quanta Magazine,
Quanta Magazine,
8 Aug. 2025
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Those have come from two players: Adrian Morejon of the San Diego Padres, who throws an odd knuckleball-changeup hybrid about 1 percent of the time, and Jonah Bride of the Minnesota Twins, an infielder fooling around with the knuckler in blowouts.—
Cody Stavenhagen,
New York Times,
19 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Showboat.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/showboat. Accessed 11 Sep. 2025.
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