Bombast
noun
Large talk or words that are too impressive and not genuine.
His claim of being the best martial artist in the world was seen by many as sheer bombast.
Often appears as...
- pure bombast
- sheer bombast
Usage tips
Formal, Disapproving
Literary
noun
In the past, soft material like cotton or wool used to fill clothes or furniture.
In the Elizabethan era, bombast was used to puff out their breeches.
Usage tips
Historical
noun
Large talk or words that are too impressive and not genuine.
His claim of being the best martial artist in the world was seen by many as sheer bombast.
Often appears as...
- pure bombast
- sheer bombast
Usage tips
Formal, Disapproving
Literary
noun
In the past, soft material like cotton or wool used to fill clothes or furniture.
In the Elizabethan era, bombast was used to puff out their breeches.
Usage tips
Historical
Definition 1 of 2
Pro Tip 1/3Insincere Grandiloquence
Bombast refers to speaking or writing that's pompous, showing off with fancy words without sincerity.
The politician's speech was pure bombast, filled with grand words that meant little.
Pro Tip 2/3Negative Connotation
Using bombast carries a negative implication that the speaker is trying to deceive or impress falsely.
The author's bombast failed to hide the weaknesses in his argument.
Pro Tip 3/3Overly Dramatic
Bombast can be seen as overly dramatic or theatrical in a way that can seem ridiculous.
The actor's bombast made the character seem less believable, rather than more powerful.
Compare with
extravagancegrandiloquenceostentationprolixityrhetoricverbosity
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Video examples
Bono: The good news on...
that overcomes that most awful offense to humanity, extreme poverty, facts that build a powerful momentum. So I thought, forget the rock opera, forget the bombast, my usual tricks.
Video examples
The good news on poverty...
to humanity extreme poverty facts that build a powerful momentum so I thought forget the rock opera forget the bombast my usual tricks
Video examples
Bono: The good news on...
that overcomes that most awful offense to humanity, extreme poverty, facts that build a powerful momentum. So I thought, forget the rock opera, forget the bombast, my usual tricks.
Video examples
The good news on poverty...
to humanity extreme poverty facts that build a powerful momentum so I thought forget the rock opera forget the bombast my usual tricks
Example 1 of 2
Quote examples
Engelbert Humperdinck
English Musician
The pomp, power, and military bombast of 'La Marseillaise' draws me into the history of France and my own. The surname I was born with was French: D'Orsay; perhaps an ancestor was amongst those troops that marched to this evocative anthem for the first time as they entered Paris 200 years ago!
Quote examples
Harold Prince
American Producer
I've always loved Victorian melodrama. And I've always liked larger-than-life theater, providing it's truthful and honest. I like what the theater can provide in energy and bombast - I enjoy it when it's large, and by that I don't mean in size, I mean in emotions. Shakespeare did that.
Quote examples
Charlie Sykes
American
In many ways, anti-anti-Trumpism mirrors Donald Trump himself because, at its core there are no fixed values, no respect for constitutional government or ideas of personal character - only a free-floating nihilism cloaked in insult, mockery, and bombast.
Quote examples
Jon Ossoff
American Director
At the structural level, when the primary is all that matters, the incentives change for politicians. And, when you can earn media coverage with bombast and vitriol, that creates another incentive for politicians to light things on fire.
Quote examples
Henry Lawson
Australian Writer
It is the same with revolution; so long as the proper spirit is spreading amongst our young men, we are satisfied that it spreads without bombast or parade.
Quote examples
George Vecsey
American Author
For years, I advised George Steinbrenner to get out of town because he dishonored my hometown with his bullying and bombast.
Quote examples
Engelbert Humperdinck
English Musician
The pomp, power, and military bombast of 'La Marseillaise' draws me into the history of France and my own. The surname I was born with was French: D'Orsay; perhaps an ancestor was amongst those troops that marched to this evocative anthem for the first time as they entered Paris 200 years ago!
Quote examples
Harold Prince
American Producer
I've always loved Victorian melodrama. And I've always liked larger-than-life theater, providing it's truthful and honest. I like what the theater can provide in energy and bombast - I enjoy it when it's large, and by that I don't mean in size, I mean in emotions. Shakespeare did that.
Quote examples
Charlie Sykes
American
In many ways, anti-anti-Trumpism mirrors Donald Trump himself because, at its core there are no fixed values, no respect for constitutional government or ideas of personal character - only a free-floating nihilism cloaked in insult, mockery, and bombast.
Quote examples
Jon Ossoff
American Director
At the structural level, when the primary is all that matters, the incentives change for politicians. And, when you can earn media coverage with bombast and vitriol, that creates another incentive for politicians to light things on fire.
Quote examples
Henry Lawson
Australian Writer
It is the same with revolution; so long as the proper spirit is spreading amongst our young men, we are satisfied that it spreads without bombast or parade.
Quote examples
George Vecsey
American Author
For years, I advised George Steinbrenner to get out of town because he dishonored my hometown with his bullying and bombast.
Example 1 of 6
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