ostentate

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ostentate

/ˈɒstənteɪt/

Where it comes from

Borrowed from Latin ostentātus, perfect passive participle of ostentō (see -ate (verb-forming suffix)), intensive from ostendō. Doublet of ostent.

verb ostentates · ostentating · ostentated

rare, transitive To make an ambitious display of; to exhibit or show boastingly. It cannot avoid the brand of arrogancy, as well as hypocrisy, to challenge and ostentate that beauty or handsomeness of complexion as ours, which indeed is none of ours by any genuine right or property.
Similar: ostent
intransitive, obsolete, rare To boast, show off.
Similar: exhibitionize, ostent, swagger, aura farm, boulevardier, cut a wide swath, cut it fat, cut round, figure away, flamboast, flaunt, flex

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MLA

"ostentate." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/ostentate. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

ostentate. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/ostentate

Chicago

"ostentate." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/ostentate.

BibTeX

@misc{ostentate_2026,
  title = {ostentate},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/ostentate},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}