''ostentatious'' ▫ᴱᴺ｜Definition｜1st｜20260904120411-00-⌔

ostentatious - Wiktionary, the free dictionary

English

Adjective

ostentatious (comparative more ostentatious, superlative most ostentatious)

• Of ostentation.
• Intended to attract notice.
  • ✤ Over the course of the war in Ukraine, the Kremlin has drawn several “red lines” – with ostentatious references to Russia’s huge strategic nuclear arsenal – only to seemingly do nothing when these lines are crossed by Ukraine or its Western backers.¹
• Of tawdry display; kitsch.

Etymology

Originated 1590; from Latin ostentātus +‎ -ious.²

Pronunciation

• (US) IPA: /ˌɒs.tɛnˈteɪ.ʃəs/, /ˌɒs.tənˈteɪ.ʃəs/
• Audio (US): 🔊
• Rhymes: -eɪʃəs

Printed 2026-09-04.

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Footnotes

1. 2024 September 19, Fred Weir, “Why Putin’s nuclear saber-rattling on Ukraine sounds different this time”, in The Christian Science Monitor: ↩

2. “ostentatious, adj.”, in OED Online ⁠, Oxford: Oxford University Press, launched 2000. ↩