Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- adjective Pompous or pretentious.
from The Century Dictionary.
- noun Pompous speech or writing; bombast; fustian.
- Pompous; high-sounding; bombastic.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- noun Jocular, U. S. High-flown, bombastic language.
- adjective informal Affectedly genteel; pretentious; haughty; snobbish.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- adjective US, informal Self-
important ,pompous ;arrogant oregotistical ; tending toshow off or hold oneself in unduly highregard .
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- adjective affectedly genteel
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
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Examples
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P.S. – "highfalutin" is my safe word with Mistress Jim.
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"'Character' is almost too highfalutin a word sometimes," coach Gregg Popovich says.
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It hardly seems right to watch the Super Bowl while eating the kind of highfalutin fare that excites Michelin-starred chefs.
Super Super Bowl Sandwiches Katy McLaughlin 2011
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Like De Quincey, on the other hand, Sharp delights in "fine writing," in both senses of the phrase, in the "highfalutin" that is objectionable, and in the ornately beautiful that is one fitting expression of romantic thought.
Irish Plays and Playwrights Cornelius Weygandt 1914
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The principal thing is to find out whether there is any connection between that camp, the 'highfalutin' gintleman 'of Uncle Mac, and the detective.
Charred Wood Francis Clement Kelley 1909
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Jessica was what he called "highfalutin" enough to fit her evident station in life, so he made no comment.
Marjorie at Seacote Carolyn Wells 1902
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'We air a go-ahead people,' they were not given to 'highfalutin', 'nor did they chew their tobacco.
To The Gold Coast for Gold, Vol. II A Personal Narrative Richard Francis Burton 1855
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Irked by Viswa's criticisms of the way some ethnic groups are treated in Singapore, LKY interrupted a medical treatment to angrily refute the "highfalutin" speech in a rare appearance on the parliament floor.
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Irked by Viswa's criticisms of the way some ethnic groups are treated in Singapore, LKY interrupted a medical treatment to angrily refute the "highfalutin" speech in a rare appearance on the parliament floor.
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Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu, delivered a statement at what is called the 'High Segment' beginning of the 13th session of the Human Rights Council (I prefer the word 'highfalutin' as it is taken up with speeches by ministers from different States, often repeating the same platitudes).
Jihad Watch 2010
oroboros commented on the word highfalutin
NOT "highfaluting".
March 17, 2007
linguista88 commented on the word highfalutin
My english prof used this word a lot to describe the tone of vocabulary in our essays.
September 18, 2007