highfaluting
- adjective
- /haɪˈfælʊtɪŋ/
- Informal
:
pretencioso
- The author's highfaluting ideas often overshadowed the simple yet profound messages in his work.
And it really is as highfaluting and as simple as I want to make the world a better place.
- And it really is as highfaluting and as simple as I want to make the world a better place.
Examples
-
And, you know, come up with this big, long, like highfaluting idea about it.
-
This is like each chapter starts with a line from like Fossa or one of those sort of highfaluting chivalry is great chroniclers.
-
And it really is as highfaluting and as simple as I want to make the world a better place.
-
He always uses such highfaluting language that it's hard to understand his main point.
-
Her highfaluting manners made her seem snobbish at the dinner party.
Synonyms
74
7.3
Trying to seem more important or clever than you really are
57
5.8
Acting more important and formal than necessary
27
7.5
Too big and showy in a way that tries to seem more important than it is
20
8.2
Acting as if you are better than other people
20
5.8
Showing elegant, expensive style that makes someone seem richer or more important
14
8.1
Acting proud and looking down on other people
13
5.8
Acting as if you are better than other people
11
7.7
To show off very expensive things to attract attention
5
9.9
Someone who acts proud and shows they feel better than others
5
9.5
Being too proud and acting as if you are better than other people
4
8.6
Claiming to be more important or successful than you are
4
9.3
Behaving or speaking in a fancy way to seem more important
3
9.9
Bragging too much about how great you think you are
2
9.8
Too much pride and confidence that makes people dislike you
1
8.7
Very fancy in a way that tries to impress people
1
8.2
Seeming important or impressive but lacking real meaning and honesty
1
9.9
Very fancy in a way that shows you think you are better than others
1
9.3
Showing the attitude of a rich person who thinks they are better than others
1
8.9
Using words or ideas that sound grand and showy but feel unrealistic
1
9.9
Using long, fancy words to sound important
Acting like you are better than other people
Acting very formal and proud to seem better than others
Acting very fancy to show you are better than others
Someone who shows educated, serious tastes in art or books and seems a bit proud
To use very big, showy words to sound important
Language that tries to sound important but has little meaning
Antonyms
How Pretentious
Surface Forms
Morphology
highfaluting = highfalutin (semi-transparent) = high + falutin
The component 'high' suggests loftiness, but the element 'falutin' is obscure and not a productive English morpheme, so the full meaning cannot be reliably derived by learners.
Etymology
Highfaluting joins high, meaning 'lofty' or 'showing importance', with a sound like flaunt, which means 'to show off', so a helpful way to remember it is to imagine someone acting very 'high' and showing off. That's why highfaluting means being pompous or pretending to be more important than you are.