1
as in to horse around
to engage in attention-getting playful or boisterous behavior
the athletes warmed up, happily showing off for the crowd before the match officially started
Synonyms & Similar Words
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2
as in to display
to present so as to invite notice or attention
she just wants to show off her new jewelry
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in hotshot
informal + disapproving
a person who tries to impress other people with his or her abilities or possessions
Related Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of show off
Billy Perrigo, Time, 9 Oct. 2025
Kim will also likely oversee a military parade, showing off the country’s latest weaponry.
—Tom Chivers, semafor.com, 9 Oct. 2025
Sandra MacGregor, Forbes, 17 Jan. 2025
This was my chance to not be an actor, not have that stink of being an actor, that egotistical, show-off, controlling, making choices, being clever part of being an actor.
—Chris Vognar, Los Angeles Times, 31 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for show off
Verb
This demonstration is intended to show off advances in the robots’ stability.
—Billy Perrigo, Time, 9 Oct. 2025
Kim will also likely oversee a military parade, showing off the country’s latest weaponry.
—Tom Chivers, semafor.com, 9 Oct. 2025
Noun
Feast On Local Delights In Fort-de-France, welcoming local food shacks and easy-going eateries reign, offering simple but delicious and affordable eats that show-off the region’s best recipes.
—Sandra MacGregor, Forbes, 17 Jan. 2025
This was my chance to not be an actor, not have that stink of being an actor, that egotistical, show-off, controlling, making choices, being clever part of being an actor.
—Chris Vognar, Los Angeles Times, 31 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for show off
Recent Examples of Synonyms for show off
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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The twins displayed just how different their styles on the red carpet, but still agreed that leather footwear was the way to go for the event.—
Karla Rodriguez,
Footwear News,
7 Oct. 2025
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The 82-mile loop travels along lava fields, forests, rivers, waterfalls, and displays mountain views of six Cascade peaks.—
Abby Price,
Travel + Leisure,
7 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Bateman also said that one member of the Bluth family wouldn't need a Hollywood hotshot to play him in the film.—
Wesley Stenzel,
Entertainment Weekly,
22 Sep. 2025
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As the show opens, both characters live in Paris, not together but peacefully and successfully co-parenting their daughter Tali (Isla Gie) and enjoying successful private-sector careers: Tony is a hotshot security consultant and Ziva manages a language school.—
Kelly Lawler,
USA Today,
4 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Authorities believe it was cut up and sold, AP reported.—
Andrea Margolis,
FOXNews.com,
1 Oct. 2025
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They also aren’t burdened with making sure any of their shots match, since in essence any take can be cut up into a master, close-ups, two-shots, or whatever else Cameron decides.—
Jim Hemphill,
IndieWire,
1 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Even if Schottenheimer wants to deny it, a lot of the grit that players and the owner pointed to that was shown in the game goes right back to him.—
Nick Harris,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
6 Oct. 2025
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Numbers provided by Cincinnati Public Schools show that the school district had 4,326 homeless students last year, representing a 77% increase from a decade prior, despite total student enrollment increasing by only 538 students over the same period of time.—
Elizabeth B. Kim,
Cincinnati Enquirer,
6 Oct. 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
Verb
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Materials could withstand 20 times more pressure Yiming Ji, the first author of the study, also underlined that their materials could withstand 20 times more pressure compared to those produced with previous methods, while exhibiting only 20% shrinkage versus 60-90%.—
Prabhat Ranjan Mishra,
Interesting Engineering,
9 Oct. 2025
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Nguyen exhibits the film next to his own artwork made from Vietnam bomb relics.—
Elizabeth Blair,
NPR,
8 Oct. 2025
Noun
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And of course, the sci-fi comedy pic’s architect, Mel Brooks, is back, returning to his roles as Zen Yiddish wise guy Yogurt and President Skroob.—
Anthony D'Alessandro,
Deadline,
25 Sep. 2025
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The Green Bay Packers made quite a Week 1 impression — at least with the wise guys in Las Vegas.—
Rob Reischel,
Forbes.com,
9 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Show off.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/show%20off. Accessed 11 Oct. 2025.
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