boasting

Pluralboastings (some meanings)

1. 1
   noununcountable

   The act of making boasts about one's own achievements, abilities, or worth.

   Their boasting about the new house grew tiresome over dinner.

   Boasting impresses few people who genuinely value modesty.

   Similarbragging, crowing

   Oppositemodesty, humility

2. 2
   verb

   Present participle and gerund of boast.

   She is boasting about her promotion to anyone who will listen.

   Boasting about his wealth, he ignored the discomfort around the table.

   Note

   Behind the -ing form stands a verb with a surprisingly wide reach. Boasting can mean bragging about or of something, but it can also mean simply possessing a desirable quality, as in a village boasting two fine churches, where no pride is involved. Stonemasons use it for dressing stone with a broad chisel, and players use it for a boast shot. The spelling is shared with the noun for bragging, so gerund and noun often look identical.

3. 3
   nouncountable

   A single boast, or a continuous spell of making proud claims about oneself.

   The toast turned into a tedious boasting about his investments.

   His endless boastings finally emptied the room.

   Similarbrag

   Note

   The countable use gives a plural, boastings, that carries a solemn, almost scriptural weight. Elizabeth Wilson's A Scriptural View of Woman's Rights and Duties (1849) warns of "vain boastings" before divine justice, and Norma Lorre Goodrich's 1961 retelling of Beowulf opens a scene with "boastings" in the mead-hall before the warriors brag. Set beside the uncountable noun, the plural suits moral, epic or mock-heroic writing.

Showing meanings only. Show all 3