Pretentious
/prɪˈtɛn.ʃəs/noun
Attempting to impress by affecting greater importance, talent, or culture than one really has.
Did you know?Pretentious comes from the same Latin root as *pretend*—from *praetendere*, meaning “to stretch forth” or “put forward,” like literally holding something out to be seen.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*ten-
“to stretch”
Latin
Latin
praetendere
“to stretch forth, hold out, allege, claim”
Late Latin
Latin
praetensus
“stretched forth, feigned”
Old French
Old French
pretentieux
“full of pretension, affected”
16th–17th Century
English
pretension
“a claim, assertion, or stretch toward something”
18th Century
English
pretentious
“making claims or showy displays beyond what is justified”