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Glite Dictionary
prima donnaish

prima donnaish

9.5
Acting like someone who thinks they are more important and wants special treatment
  • adjective
  • /ˌpriːmə ˈdɒnəɪʃ/
  • Offensive
: caprichoso (informal, despectivo)
  • She became especially prima donnaish when the director criticized her performance.

Examples

  • His prima donnaish attitude made working with him very difficult for the team.

  • The coach warned the players against acting prima donnaish during the championship.

  • Don't be so prima donnaish about your role!

  • Her prima donnaish attitude annoyed the entire team.

  • His prima donnaish attitude made it hard for the team to collaborate effectively.

  • She became particularly prima donnaish after receiving negative feedback from the director.

  • The coach emphasized that being prima donnaish would hurt the team's chances of winning.

Synonyms

narcissistic
vsprima donnaish
53 7.8

Being sure you are much more important than other people

is more temperamental and seeks special treatment beyond simple self-admiration
egotistical
vsprima donnaish
  • Offensive
23 6.6

Seeing yourself as much more important than other people

is more temperamental and demands special treatment rather than just self-importance
egotistic
vsprima donnaish
  • Offensive
1 7.2

Thinking you are more important than other people

is more temperamental and expects special attention rather than mere self-focus

Antonyms

modest
83 2.7

Not thinking you are better than others and not boasting

unpretentious
8 5.1

Simple and honest in style and not trying to impress people

How Self-Important

prima donnaish
  • Offensive
9.5
unassuming
20 5.8

Surface Forms

prima donnaish positive

Morphology

prima + donnaish

The adjective is transparently built from the phrase 'prima donna' (a leading, often temperamentally demanding performer) plus the productive English suffix '-ish' meaning 'like' or 'characteristic of'. A B1 learner who knows the constituents and the suffix can easily infer 'prima donnaish' = behaving like a prima donna (self-important, demanding), and the underlying logic is familiar cross-linguistically through the loaned phrase.

Etymology

The word prima donnaish comes from the old opera term prima donna, meaning 'first lady', the main female singer who often got special treatment and could be very moody. So when someone is called prima donnaish, it means they act like that star: they demand special treatment and can be hard to work with.