prætentious

A form of pretentious — Motivated by an inappropriate, excessive, or unjustified desire to impress others.

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Meanings

adjectiveprætentious (comparative more prætentious, superlative most prætentious)

comparative more prætentious · superlative most prætentious

  1. alternativerarepedantic or humorousAlternative spelling of pretentious.

    It’s praetentious.

    2005 February 15, “Arval”, rec.org.sca (Google group): Terminology: Mediaeval or Medieval?
    2 more examples

    Poa Secunda and John Secada don’t play bluegrass; and I’m not prætentious enough to pretend I can identify Kentucky Bluegrass, although there was a band by that name (Poa Prætensis) in the mid-‛70s.

    1996 January 6, “Dan Mazer”, bit.listserv.bgrass-l (Google group): Poaverty

    Guess I was just being prætentious in my spelling. }->

    1999 August 19, “Dave Van Domelen”, rec.arts.comics.marvel.universe (Google group): RANT: Dave’s Marvel Rant: Cap, TBolts, Panther
Cite this entry
APA

prætentious. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/pr%C3%A6tentious

MLA

“prætentious.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/pr%C3%A6tentious. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “prætentious,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/pr%C3%A6tentious.

Source: prætentious on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.