PRETENTIOUSLY Synonyms: 53 Similar and Opposite Words

pretentiously

adverb

as in pompously

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Recent Examples of pretentiously What can be said about the Kalimotxo that hasn’t been pretentiously asserted by an undergraduate who just learned about it? — Jason O'Bryan, Robb Report, 11 Oct. 2025

Recent Examples of Synonyms for pretentiously

Adverb

Texas is taking it to a new level, pompously trying to single-handedly keep Republican control of the House after the 2026 midterms.

— Reader Commentary, Baltimore Sun, 7 Aug. 2025

Definition of pompously

Adverb

Bryan Fuller’s expressionistic procedural is ostentatiously gruesome, yes, but the increasingly disturbing interplay between Will and Hannibal — cat and mouse, will-they/won’t they — is a full course meal on its own.

— Matt Cabral, Entertainment Weekly, 10 Apr. 2026
In her closet were seven Ungaros, three Rykiels, a Kamali bathing suit and a Kamali sleeping-bag coat, five Kenzo dresses, two pieces from the Ballets Russes collection of Saint Laurent—all of which were trades or payments in kind, none of them mothballed, but instead worn ostentatiously and often.

— Han Ong, New Yorker, 15 Mar. 2026

Definition of ostentatiously

Adverb

Elise Armani and Katy Siegel, an art history PhD candidate/museum curator and an art history professor, respectively, coauthor in an engaging voice, and their joint expertise ranges impressively across media.

— Anna Kornbluh, ARTnews.com, 7 Oct. 2026
These tools can be impressively fast, but a confident-looking answer can still be wrong.

— Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 6 Oct. 2026

Definition of impressively

Adverb

Judge has now played 10 full seasons in the big leagues, some of them magnificently.

— Mike Lupica, New York Daily News, 8 Oct. 2026
Madonna kept winning awards all night, giving magnificently chaotic, unprepared, and awkward speeches, yet still with more star power than anyone in the room.

— Rob Sheffield, Rolling Stone, 28 Sep. 2026

Definition of magnificently

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pretentious

pretentiously

pretentiousness

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“Pretentiously.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pretentiously. Accessed 9 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of pretentiously

adverb

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