as in smug
having too high an opinion of oneself
a vainglorious woman who always insists on being the center of attention
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Recent Examples of vainglorious
Ivy-as-Marilyn is an inconsiderate, amphetamine guzzling faux-intellectual whose devotion to the acting craft is presented as a vainglorious affectation.
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Greg Evans, Deadline, 10 Apr. 2025
The name is meant to evoke Theodore Roosevelt’s vainglorious 1898 cavalry charge up San Juan Hill in the Spanish-American War.
—Robert F. Worth, The Atlantic, 8 Apr. 2025
Daemon, Viserys’s vainglorious younger brother, had married his niece in part as a way to strengthen his own bid for the throne, and Alicent had pushed for the ascension of her immature firstborn, Aegon.
—Inkoo Kang, The New Yorker, 5 Aug. 2024
Debuting March 3, the six-part realpolitik satire, created and executive produced by Succession alum Will Tracy, sees Oscar and Emmy winner Winslet return to HBO in an often hilarious role as the vainglorious Elena.
—Dominic Patten, Deadline, 20 June 2024
See All Example Sentences for vainglorious
Greg Evans, Deadline, 10 Apr. 2025
The name is meant to evoke Theodore Roosevelt’s vainglorious 1898 cavalry charge up San Juan Hill in the Spanish-American War.
—Robert F. Worth, The Atlantic, 8 Apr. 2025
Daemon, Viserys’s vainglorious younger brother, had married his niece in part as a way to strengthen his own bid for the throne, and Alicent had pushed for the ascension of her immature firstborn, Aegon.
—Inkoo Kang, The New Yorker, 5 Aug. 2024
Debuting March 3, the six-part realpolitik satire, created and executive produced by Succession alum Will Tracy, sees Oscar and Emmy winner Winslet return to HBO in an often hilarious role as the vainglorious Elena.
—Dominic Patten, Deadline, 20 June 2024
See All Example Sentences for vainglorious
Recent Examples of Synonyms for vainglorious
Adjective
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The smug and sanctimonious tenor of their briefing makes that plain.—
Christie D’Zurilla,
Los Angeles Times,
18 June 2025
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In a comedic twist, the Labrador retriever was filmed turning back to his owner during the drive, with a smug look on his face as if to boast about his comfortable spot.—
Melissa Fleur Afshar,
MSNBC Newsweek,
11 June 2025
Adjective
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The protests proved conclusively that Americans will not tolerate the deployment of the U.S. military in American cities, the constant line-stepping over constitutional boundaries, the arrests of political dissenters, or the arrogant defense of police-state tactics.—
Newsweek Staff,
MSNBC Newsweek,
18 June 2025
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In Aesop’s fable, the turtle (traditionally called a tortoise, which is a type of turtle) is a winner, a perpetual underdog who defeats the arrogant hare.—
A.O. Scott,
New York Times,
13 June 2025
Adjective
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By agreeing on the eventual package of £116m, Hughes and Rolfes were able to shake hands and both feel proud of the outcome.—
Gregg Evans,
New York Times,
20 June 2025
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But while Boyle is proud of his influence on the zombie film landscape, he’s mostly abstained from watching any of those movies himself.—
Jake Kleinman,
Wired News,
20 June 2025
Adjective
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Cowdrey was struck a painful blow by Somerset’s Adrian Jones the following week while trying in vain to lead Kent to the County Championship title and, brutally, his time in charge of the national team was quietly curtailed.—
Paul Newman,
New York Times,
19 June 2025
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But Simmons takes his time building his flawed character, who is soft-spoken in private, vain about his appearance and unfaithful to his wife.—
Pam Kragen,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
2 June 2025
Adjective
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The men were very egotistical in this film and no one really showed up.—
Jeff Conway,
Forbes.com,
6 June 2025
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In the upcoming film, Oscar Isaac stars as Dr. Victor Frankenstein, a brilliant but egotistical scientist who brings a creature (Jacob Elordi) to life in a monstrous experiment that ultimately leads to the undoing of both the creator and his tragic creation.—
Matt Grobar,
Deadline,
31 May 2025
Adjective
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It was being painted as an out-of-touch, arcane, and self-important social institution from a bygone era, and was doing very little to dispel that characterization.—
David Rosowsky,
Forbes.com,
13 June 2025
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This splendid, wry satire is about a wealthy family, self-important and confident in their morality, whose blithe and bumptious existences are thrown into disarray when their father clandestinely decides to give all their money to charity, and so (in their opinions) completely destroys their lives.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
7 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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This is the worst kind of football team: a conceited but objectively mediocre squad.—
Dieter Kurtenbach,
The Mercury News,
17 Nov. 2024
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Rory Kinnear steals some of the best lines as the conceited British prime minister, and Ato Essandoh, as Kate’s deputy chief, plays the ever-flustered man surrounded by extremely capable women with admirable humor, charm, and confidence.—
Ben Travers,
IndieWire,
30 Oct. 2024
Adjective
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At 11:30, as the simultaneously pompous and obsequious gate agent announces the passengers above gold status, the bit, already tilting toward insanity, leaves any attempt to portray a real airport behind and dives fully into Alice in Wonderland–level surrealism.—
John Roy,
Vulture,
8 May 2025
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Signaling a stark departure from tradition that, over the centuries, had ranged from formal to pompous, Pope Francis began teaching us, from day one, what the most genuine leadership looks like. Humble.—
Eli Amdur,
Forbes.com,
26 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Vainglorious.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/vainglorious. Accessed 3 Jul. 2025.
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