as in vanity
an often unjustified feeling of being pleased with oneself or with one's situation or achievements
the vainglory that nations have historically shown after they have achieved military supremacy
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Recent Examples of vainglory
On Saturday, on the streets of Washington, Donald Trump will throw himself a costly and ostentatious military parade, a gaudy display of waste and vainglory staged solely to inflate the president’s dirigible-sized ego.
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Mark Z. Barabak, Los Angeles Times, 12 June 2025
The conceit is saved from vainglory by the gravity Cage brings to the performance.
—Isaac Butler, The New Yorker, 1 Dec. 2023
Cuevas excels at spotlighting vainglory, and there’s plenty to go around here.
—Chris Vognar, Rolling Stone, 27 July 2023
For all his vainglory, Mitchell was onto something in betting on a race as an aeronautical showcase.
—Michael O’Donnell, WSJ, 18 Nov. 2022
The best reason to pursue anarchism, to walk that line between chaos and the man, is that none of us is free from greed or vainglory.
—Alan Jacobs, Harper’s Magazine , 9 Nov. 2022
Behind closed doors, people are nervously voicing that the annual grandstanding on stage has shifted too much towards vainglory, rather than progress against staggering challenges.
—Charles Beames, Forbes, 31 Aug. 2021
Recent Examples of Synonyms for vainglory
Noun
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Posing on top of an antique vanity and inside a wooden cabinet, Bieber cycled through a parade of sheer lace, see-through mesh, and strappy designs in shades of red, black, pink, and cream.—
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Store liquids—such as lotion, makeup, perfumes, and skincare—on a tray to protect your vanity table or bathroom cabinet.—
Noun
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His on-field poise and ego-free personality are a combination that will be an easy sell to an NFL locker room.—
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The ego, the hardness, the … callousness of anything that might be on the heart or the mind had literally just melted away.—
Noun
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But, most of all, there was pride — the good kind of pride.—
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The Hoosiers are the bad guys, the bullies come to take your pride and your lunch money, albeit politely.—
Noun
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Miami, Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach take turns transforming into floating marketplaces — docks converted to catwalks, hulls polished to reflective arrogance, sales reps who can quote fuel burn like yacht owners care about costs.—
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College football is awash in problems, including the Big Ten’s unrivaled arrogance, and its never-ending list of demands that would make Notre Dame blush.—
Cite this Entry
“Vainglory.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/vainglory. Accessed 13 Jan. 2026.
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