braggadocio

noun

brag·​ga·​do·​cio ˌbra-gə-ˈdō-sē-ˌō 

-shē-,

-chē-,

-(ˌ)shō,

-(ˌ)chō

plural braggadocios

1

a

: empty boasting

b

: arrogant pretension : cockiness

the air of swaggering braggadocio that all important men are expected to show in fighting

—C. W. M. Hart

2

: braggart

Did you know?

Though Braggadocio is not as well-known as other fictional characters like Pollyanna, the Grinch, or Scrooge, in lexicography he holds a special place next to them as one of the many characters whose name has become an established word in English. The English poet Edmund Spenser originally created Braggadocio as a personification of boasting in his epic poem The Faerie Queene. As early as 1594, about four years after the poem was published, English speakers began using the name as a general term for any blustering blowhard. The now more common use of braggadocio, referring to the talk or behavior of such windy cockalorums, developed in the early 18th century.

Synonyms

• bluster
• bombast
• brag
• bull [slang]
• cockalorum
• fanfaronade
• gas
• gasconade
• grandiloquence
• hot air
• magniloquence
• rant
• rodomontade
• rhodomontade

Examples of braggadocio in a Sentence

a loudmouthed braggart who hid his cowardice with braggadocio

his braggadocio hid the fact that he felt personally inadequate

Recent Examples on the Web

After all, marketing itself is somewhat narcissistic, with its continual cries for attention and thinly veiled braggadocio. —Martin Kihn, Forbes, 2 Jan. 2025

Since then, the rise of social media has been marked, among other dreadful things, by lifestyle braggadocio and algorithms fine-tuned to serve scarily relevant ads. —Ron Lieber, New York Times, 30 Dec. 2024

Cardo’s woozy production aided Amine’s syrupy chorus and led to more braggadocios bars from the 30-year-old. —Michael Saponara, Billboard, 25 Nov. 2024

But one of the players who did attend, and who enjoyed seeing Lyles back up all that braggadocio in a race won by a remarkable five one-thousandths of a second over Jamaica’s Kishane Thompson, was Phoenix Suns star Devin Booker. —Sam Amick, The Athletic, 5 Aug. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Braggadochio, personification of boasting in Faerie Queene by Edmund Spenser

First Known Use

1594, in the meaning defined at sense 2

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Kids Definition

braggadocio

noun

brag·​ga·​do·​cio ˌbrag-ə-ˈdō-shē-ˌō 

-sē-ˌō,

-shō

plural braggadocios

1

: braggart

2

: loud and empty boasting

Etymology

from Braggadochio, a boasting character in literature