ARROGANT Synonyms: 127 Similar and Opposite Words

Q: How does the adjective 'arrogant' differ from other similar words?

Some common synonyms of arrogant are disdainful , haughty , insolent , lordly , overbearing , proud , and supercilious . While all these words mean "showing scorn for inferiors," arrogant implies a claiming for oneself of more consideration or importance than is warranted. // a conceited and arrogant executive

Q: When is 'disdainful' a more appropriate choice than 'arrogant'?

The synonyms disdainful and arrogant are sometimes interchangeable, but disdainful suggests a more active and openly scornful superciliousness. // disdainful of their social inferiors

Q: When would 'haughty' be a good substitute for 'arrogant'?

The words haughty and arrogant are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, haughty suggests a consciousness of superior birth or position. // a haughty aristocrat

Q: When might 'insolent' be a better fit than 'arrogant'?

The words insolent and arrogant can be used in similar contexts, but insolent implies contemptuous haughtiness. // ignored by an insolent waiter

Q: When could 'lordly' be used to replace 'arrogant'?

The meanings of lordly and arrogant largely overlap; however, lordly implies pomposity or an arrogant display of power. // a lordly condescension

Q: Where would 'overbearing' be a reasonable alternative to 'arrogant'?

While the synonyms overbearing and arrogant are close in meaning, overbearing suggests a tyrannical manner or an intolerable insolence. // an overbearing supervisor

Q: When can 'proud' be used instead of 'arrogant'?

In some situations, the words proud and arrogant are roughly equivalent. However, proud may suggest an assumed superiority or loftiness. // too proud to take charity

Q: When is it sensible to use 'supercilious' instead of 'arrogant'?

While in some cases nearly identical to arrogant , supercilious implies a cool, patronizing haughtiness. // an aloof and supercilious manner

arrogant

adjective

ˈer-ə-gənt

Definition of arrogant next

as in cavalier

having a feeling of superiority that shows itself in an overbearing attitude the arrogant young lawyer elbowed his way to the head of the line of customers, declaring that he was too busy to wait like everybody else

Synonyms & Similar Words

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an arrogant attitude

a pompous attitude

a smug attitude

an overconfident attitude

a snobbish attitude

a conceited attitude

arrogant people

overconfident people

cocky people

egotistical people

pompous people

conceited people

an arrogant assumption

an audacious assumption

a pompous assumption

a presumptuous assumption

an overconfident assumption

a boastful assumption

Synonym Chooser

How does the adjective arrogant differ from other similar words?

Some common synonyms of arrogant are disdainful, haughty, insolent, lordly, overbearing, proud, and supercilious. While all these words mean "showing scorn for inferiors," arrogant implies a claiming for oneself of more consideration or importance than is warranted.

a conceited and arrogant executive

When is disdainful a more appropriate choice than arrogant?

The synonyms disdainful and arrogant are sometimes interchangeable, but disdainful suggests a more active and openly scornful superciliousness.

disdainful of their social inferiors

When would haughty be a good substitute for arrogant?

The words haughty and arrogant are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, haughty suggests a consciousness of superior birth or position.

a haughty aristocrat

When might insolent be a better fit than arrogant?

The words insolent and arrogant can be used in similar contexts, but insolent implies contemptuous haughtiness.

ignored by an insolent waiter

When could lordly be used to replace arrogant?

The meanings of lordly and arrogant largely overlap; however, lordly implies pomposity or an arrogant display of power.

a lordly condescension

Where would overbearing be a reasonable alternative to arrogant?

While the synonyms overbearing and arrogant are close in meaning, overbearing suggests a tyrannical manner or an intolerable insolence.

an overbearing supervisor

When can proud be used instead of arrogant?

In some situations, the words proud and arrogant are roughly equivalent. However, proud may suggest an assumed superiority or loftiness.

too proud to take charity

When is it sensible to use supercilious instead of arrogant?

While in some cases nearly identical to arrogant, supercilious implies a cool, patronizing haughtiness.

an aloof and supercilious manner

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of arrogant There’s an arrogant swagger to a lot of the alternative truth crowd. —

Meredith Blake, Los Angeles Times, 2 Jan. 2025 Yes, it is run by the brilliant but stunningly arrogant if not downright belligerent Alex Karp who rips through those who actually want to tell the story like a machete through margarine. —

Jim Cramer, CNBC, 15 Dec. 2024 Julie Bowen and Christopher McDonald return as love interest Virginia Venit and arrogant rival Shooter McGavin, respectively, and the cast includes rookies like Bad Bunny, Travis Kelce and pro wrestler Maxwell Jacob Friedman. —

Brian Truitt, USA TODAY, 17 Jan. 2025 Those include genial second-year resident Dr. King (Taylor Dearden), arrogant intern Santos (Isa Briones), and doe-eyed med students Javadi (Shabana Azeez) and Whittaker (Gerran Howell). —

Ryan Schwartz, TVLine, 9 Jan. 2025 See all Example Sentences for arrogant

Recent Examples of Synonyms for arrogant

Adjective

Star Wars: Skeleton Crew A cavalier Jude Law as a space pirate meets four kids way too far from home, plus some secrets of the galaxy and the Old Republic.

— Dominic Patten, Deadline, 30 Dec. 2024
In her opening statement, Johnson painted Baldwin, who starred in and produced the film, as cavalier with firearms and suggested that the cast and crew faced constraints, ramping up the risk of someone getting injured on set.

— Victoria Bekiempis, Vulture, 10 July 2024