bloviation means A boastful or pompous manner of speaking or writing; a lengthy discourse delivered in that manner. It carries an Arena rating of 1606, earned across 94 head-to-head judged battles.
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, bloviation ranks #225 of 17,163 for Funniest Words, #633 of 17,126 for Most Satisfying to Say, #676 of 17,151 for The Improbable, #1,153 of 17,138 for Most Incisive Words.
bloviation is pronounced /bləʊvɪˈeɪʃən/.
Why “bloviation” is a great word
BLOVIATION — [Noun] A boastful, pompous, and typically lengthy manner of speaking or writing that is hollow of substance. From the verb 'bloviate' (a pseudo-Latin alteration of 'blow' in the sense 'to boast') + the noun-forming suffix '-ion'. The term was popularized in American political discourse, notably associated with President Warren G. Harding in the early 20th century. Unlike an "oration," which aspires to formal dignity, or a "rant," which is fueled by vehement passion, bloviation is the art of sonic inflation. It is the droning cadence of a filibuster, the suffocating fog of corporate jargon, the grand, empty gesture of a politician painting a verbal mural with a bucket of beige—an audible monument not to ideas, but to the speaker's own echo.
Etymology
From bloviate + -ion.
noun
- A boastful or pompous manner of speaking or writing; a lengthy discourse delivered in that manner.e.g.“For doing my duty, I claim no credit—I seek no “bloviations”—I ask for no sacrifices—I desire no ovations— [...]” — 1850 June 29, J. McCormick, J. V. Smith (official reporter), “[Report No. 1 on the Judiciary]”, in Report of the Debates and Proceedings of the Convention for the Revision of the Constitution of the S
Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
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