to make a show of oneself
1
7.5
- idiom
- Informal
:
llamar la atención
Examples
-
Gertie made a show of herself, jumping into the grave every chance she got.
Fiction book (1993) -
We too have a fear of looking lesser or a fear of being wrong, and so many of us grew up with the mantra 'never discuss politics or religion'—don't show your hand and certainly don't make a show of yourself.
Blog text (29) -
At the party, she decided to make a show of herself by dancing on the table, which embarrassed her friends.
-
He made a show of himself at the meeting, loudly voicing his opinions even when others disagreed.
-
To make a show of oneself in front of an audience can often lead to awkward situations, as was the case with his dramatic speech.
Synonyms
216
3.2
To act proudly to get attention or praise
62
5.7
To show something in a very obvious way to get attention
54
6.5
To act in a way that is not natural to impress others
53
4.9
To show something you own to get people's attention
47
3.9
To walk or behave to show off and attract attention
28
4.8
To walk proudly with lively steps to get attention
12
7.7
To show off something to impress other people, often on social media
8
7.9
To show off to attract attention from others
4
8.4
Act as if you are better than other people
3
7.7
To confidently show your skills or style to impress people
1
7.5
Act in a flashy way to get attention
1
9.9
Act in a showy way to impress people
1
8.1
To act as if you are better than other people
Act in a loud way to get attention and impress people
To show things in a way that makes people admire you
To talk about yourself to show you are more important
Act in a way that shows off to make yourself feel important
How Embarrassing
42
4.1
- Informal
1
7.5
- Informal
216
3.2
71
2.5
Surface Forms
Morphology
make + a + show + of + oneself
The meaning 'behave in a way that attracts attention' is directly derivable from the parts: 'make' (to produce), 'show' (a display), and 'of oneself' (directed at oneself), so the phrase literally means to put on a display of oneself. This compositional NP construction is common in English and has clear parallels in other languages, so a B1 learner who knows the constituent words would likely infer the intended meaning.
Etymology
Make a show of oneself comes from the image of someone making a show—acting or performing in front of others to draw attention to oneself. That's why it now means 'to behave in a way that attracts attention and often causes embarrassment or makes people disapprove'.