1
as in rhetoric
boastful speech or writing
the other world leaders at the international conference had little interest in being subjected to the president's bombast
Synonyms & Similar Words
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2
as in grandiloquence
language that is impressive-sounding but not meaningful or sincere
you need less bombast and more substance in this speech on human rights
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of bombast
The country will be served another helping of his bombast for the next four years.
—
Reader Commentary, Baltimore Sun, 16 Jan. 2025
In many ways, the letter that President-elect Donald J. Trump’s criminal defense lawyers sent to the Justice Department this week was a display of legal and political bombast.
—Alan Feuer, New York Times, 8 Jan. 2025
In his typical understated manner, so at odds with the bombast of the other branches of government, Hecht told The Texas Tribune that serving on the court has been the honor of his life.
—Eleanor Klibanoff, Austin American-Statesman, 30 Dec. 2024
Trump has always trafficked in absurdity, but there was a time when his bombast at least had a strategic purpose.
—Thomas G. Moukawsher, Newsweek, 5 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for bombast
Reader Commentary, Baltimore Sun, 16 Jan. 2025
In many ways, the letter that President-elect Donald J. Trump’s criminal defense lawyers sent to the Justice Department this week was a display of legal and political bombast.
—Alan Feuer, New York Times, 8 Jan. 2025
In his typical understated manner, so at odds with the bombast of the other branches of government, Hecht told The Texas Tribune that serving on the court has been the honor of his life.
—Eleanor Klibanoff, Austin American-Statesman, 30 Dec. 2024
Trump has always trafficked in absurdity, but there was a time when his bombast at least had a strategic purpose.
—Thomas G. Moukawsher, Newsweek, 5 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for bombast
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bombast
Noun
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And now, as layoffs on the federal government rise, business confidence falls, and economic forecasts weaken, Wall Street—long used to Trump's market-friendly rhetoric—is being told by the president to embrace the volatility as part of a longer-term strategy.—
Faisal Kutty,
Newsweek,
11 Mar. 2025
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This marks the second week in a row that the governor invited a conservative guest onto his podcast who espoused transphobic rhetoric.—
Abby Monteil,
Them,
11 Mar. 2025
Noun
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Much of that singularity was centered in McCarthy’s prose, which ricocheted—sometimes gracefully, sometimes jarringly—between gruff matter-of-factness and soaring, biblical grandiloquence.—
Alex Shephard,
The New Republic,
13 June 2023
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Several of them can fly, and all have at least a touch of grandiloquence to them.—
Michael Nordine,
Variety,
11 Aug. 2022
Noun
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Nicholson's portrayal of a rebellious mental hospital inmate is a phenomenal combination of sly intelligence and impish braggadocio, best showcased during the scene where, thwarted in his attempt to watch the World Series on TV, McMurphy ad libs a commentary in front of a blank set.—
EW.com,
EW.com,
2 Mar. 2025
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Some of the braggadocio Bregman displayed during the previous two seasons disappeared, but his behind-the-scenes leadership did not.—
Chandler Rome,
The Athletic,
12 Feb. 2025
Noun
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Loewe’s Puzzle bag, which Anderson introduced in his first collection, and which is made from soft leather cut into patchwork pieces and then stitched back together at rakish angles, is a choice non-blingy brag.—
Rebecca Mead,
The New Yorker,
17 Mar. 2025
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How 'Intermezzo' sparked envy, became the galley brag of 2024 I, dear reader, am not above a galley brag.—
Clare Mulroy,
USA TODAY,
27 Feb. 2025
Noun
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Reports suggest that some Republican lawmakers are frustrated with Musk’s bluster and that the DOGE approach to slashing the federal bureaucracy is angering constituents and making lawmakers less popular in their districts.—
Charlie Warzel,
The Atlantic,
12 Mar. 2025
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The Brooklyn lawmaker said Trump’s speech was all bluster and failed to include concrete proposals to improve the stuttering economy.—
Dave Goldiner,
New York Daily News,
5 Mar. 2025
Noun
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The combat is usually riddled with party chatter and characters shouting their special moves, which creates a high-energy crescendo of sights and sounds when paired with the excellent battle music.—
PCMAG,
PCMAG,
18 Mar. 2025
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This set off some table-wide chatter about the most recent World Series, which the Yankees lost to the Dodgers in somewhat humiliating fashion, capped off by a disastrous error-riddled inning that saw a five-run lead evaporate in the decisive Game 5.—
Kaitlyn Tiffany,
The Atlantic,
17 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Bombast.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bombast. Accessed 23 Mar. 2025.
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