making claim to or creating an appearance of (often undeserved) importance or distinction; "a pretentious country house"; "a pretentious fraud"; "a pretentious scholarly edition"
Used in a Sentence
pretentious
How to use pretentious in a sentence. Example sentences and definitions for pretentious.
Editorial note
" There is more to wine than "pretentious people with their cellars.
Examples13
Definitions3
Parts of speech1
Quick take
making claim to or creating an appearance of (often undeserved) importance or distinction; "a pretentious country house"; "a pretentious fraud"; "a pretentious scholarly edition"
Meaning at a glance
The clearest senses and uses of pretentious gathered in one view.
intended to attract notice and impress others; "an ostentatious sable coat"
(of a display) tawdry or vulgar
Definitions
Core meanings and parts of speech for pretentious.
adjective
making claim to or creating an appearance of (often undeserved) importance or distinction; "a pretentious country house"; "a pretentious fraud"; "a pretentious scholarly edition"
adjective
intended to attract notice and impress others; "an ostentatious sable coat"
See also: ostentatious
adjective
(of a display) tawdry or vulgar
See also: ostentatious
Example sentences
" There is more to wine than "pretentious people with their cellars.
Like many pretentious high school students, I've read him, but may not be the better for it.
Maybe I am being pretentious, but I swear I am just trying to help and expose my thoughts on the subject.
Ignoring the issue like he is "above it" is pretty fucking pretentious if you ask me.
Out of all the pretentious "this isn't Hacker News" comments, this is the most ridiculous example I've seen.
Not only is the CEO irresponsible, she sounds pretentious.
I love Heroku, but am I the only one that thinks their choice of words describing their architecture is a bit pretentious?
Man this housing advice is really pretentious -- only live in Mountain View or SF with an internship salary?
I replied something to the effect of "well I think it'd be pretentious for me to call myself an expert, I like to let my work speak for itself.".
And I'm not saying that Dustin Curtis deserved to have his design imitated because he was pretentious, oh no.
It's why I never take a position in these threads except maybe to offer pretentious meta-analysis, like I'm doing right now.
The university had a computer club but I found that lot, as a whole, to be a pretentious lot with whom I had precious little in common.
A world made up of overly-reviewed, pretentious gadgets slightly edges out a utilitarian, post-apocalyptic, hellscape Bartertown where people scavenge through wreckage looking for makeshift utensils and clothing.
Frequently asked questions
Short answers drawn from the clearest meanings and examples for this word.
How do you use pretentious in a sentence?
" There is more to wine than "pretentious people with their cellars.
What does pretentious mean?
making claim to or creating an appearance of (often undeserved) importance or distinction; "a pretentious country house"; "a pretentious fraud"; "a pretentious scholarly edition"
What part of speech is pretentious?
pretentious is commonly used as adjective.