Skip to learning

YOUR VOCABULARY, ONE WORD AT A TIME

ostentatious

Adjective

IPA /ˌɒstenˈteɪʃəs/

Understand it. Say it. Use it.

UNDERSTAND THE WORD

Meaning in plain English

Designed to impress people by showing wealth or importance in an obvious way.

SAY IT ALOUD

Pronunciation

ostentatious/ˌɒstenˈteɪʃəs/

PICTURE THE IDEA

See the meaning

Compare
  1. A simple watch serves its purpose

  2. An extravagant display announces wealth

An ostentatious choice is intended to impress through an obvious display of status.

SEE IT IN EVERYDAY ENGLISH

Examples in context

Read the examples aloud. Notice how the word fits the sentence, then think of a situation of your own.

  1. He preferred a simple watch to an ostentatious gold one.
  2. The novel contrasts the director's ostentatious office with the cramped staff room.

MAKE IT STICK

Quick word quiz

Try the question without looking back, then write a sentence of your own. You can retry as often as you like.

Can you recall the word?

Complete the example using the word from this lesson.

He preferred a simple watch to an ________ gold one.
Show the answer

ostentatious — Designed to impress people by showing wealth or importance in an obvious way.

Try your own sentence (optional)

Make it yours

Write one sentence using “ostentatious” about your own life.

Check your sentence

Does your sentence match this meaning?

Designed to impress people by showing wealth or importance in an obvious way.

Compare: He preferred a simple watch to an ostentatious gold one.

Check the spelling and how the word fits the sentence. Your example can be different.

Self-review only. Your sentence is not automatically marked, saved or submitted.

This quiz is for practice. To save lesson completion on this device, complete the checks in the app.

Word origin

Formed from ostentation and -ous, ultimately related to Latin ostentare, meaning to display.

Did you know?

Ostentatious display and ostentatious wealth emphasise a desire to attract admiration.

Explore related words

Open a word’s lesson when available, or explore entries that use the related term.

Make the word your own

  1. Say the word aloud and read an example sentence.
  2. Write a new sentence about something familiar to you.
  3. Cover the meaning and try explaining the word in your own words.

Continue with the app’s practice check, then try a sentence of your own to mark this word complete.

Practise this word in the app

Completion and saved words stay in this browser on this device.

Share this word

Save the image or share a link to this word.

@englishskillstudio

ostentatious

/ˌɒstenˈteɪʃəs/ (Adjective)

“Usually disapproving: expensive or beautiful things are not necessarily ostentatious unless they seem showy.”

englishskillstudio.com