Definition

1. Noun:
   • The quality of being pretentious: The act of behaving or speaking in a manner that creates a false appearance of great importance, worth, or sophistication.
   • A claim to a particular quality, status, or right: The assertion of a right, title, or entitlement to something.
   • An aspiration or ambition: A stated or implied aim or goal, sometimes one that is not fully justified.
   • A false or unsupportable quality: Something that is presented as true or valid but lacks a solid foundation.

Usage Examples

• Noun (Quality of being pretentious):
  • His constant use of obscure vocabulary was pure pretension.
  • The pretension of the art critic made him difficult to talk to.
• Noun (A claim or assertion):
  • She has no pretension to being an expert in the field.
  • His pretension to the family estate was challenged in court.
• Noun (An aspiration):
  • The small town's pretensions to becoming a cultural hub were charming.
• Noun (False quality):
  • The argument was full of logical pretension and fell apart under scrutiny.

Advanced Usage

• "Without pretension": Used to describe something or someone that is simple, honest, and not trying to appear more important than they are.
  • She writes with great skill and without pretension.
• "Pretensions to something": A formal phrase indicating claims or aspirations toward a particular thing.
  • The film has serious pretensions to being a work of high art.

Variants and Related Words

• Pretentious (adj): Attempting to impress by affecting greater importance or merit than is actually possessed.
  • The pretentious décor of the restaurant was off-putting.
• Pretentiously (adv): In a pretentious manner.
• Pretentiousness (n): The quality of being pretentious; synonym for the first meaning of "pretension".

Synonyms

• Affectation: Artificial behavior adopted to impress others.
• Ostentation: Excessive display intended to attract attention or admiration.
• Claim: An assertion of the truth of something, typically one considered debatable.
• Aspiration: A hope or ambition of achieving something.

Antonyms

• Modesty: The quality of being unassuming in the estimation of one's abilities.
• Humility: A modest view of one's own importance.
• Genuineness: The quality of being truly what something is said to be; authenticity.

Idioms and Phrases

• "To have pretensions of/to grandeur": To aspire to or affect a style of life, manners, or importance associated with the upper classes or high society.
  • The newly wealthy family had clear pretensions to grandeur.
• "To strip away the pretension": To remove the artificial or false aspects of something to reveal its true nature.
  • The director's style strips away all pretension to focus on raw emotion.

Noun

1. the quality of being pretentious (behaving or speaking in such a manner as to create a false appearance of great importance or worth)
2. the advancing of a claim
   • his pretension to the crown
   • the town still puts forward pretensions as a famous resort
3. a false or unsupportable quality