Meaning & use
arrogance
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Meaning
noununcountable
An attitude of exaggerated self-importance, often shown by ignoring or looking down on other people.
Grammar: No plural; commonly follows the or appears with display, show, and sheer.
Patterns
- the arrogance of someone
- display arrogance
- arrogance to do something
His arrogance made the meeting difficult.
The arrogance of assuming everyone agrees is striking.
She mistook confidence for arrogance until he dismissed every idea.
Common combinations
- sheer arrogance
- It was sheer arrogance to cancel without telling the team.
- arrogance of power
- The story warns about the arrogance of power.
- display arrogance
- He rarely displays arrogance, even after winning.
- border on arrogance
- Claiming you can finish alone may border on arrogance.
Synonyms and how they differ
- conceit
- Strong self-admiration; arrogance is more about claiming superiority over others.
- haughtiness
- A proud, cold manner, while arrogance can be a broader attitude.
- hubris
- Formal or literary excessive pride that often leads to a fall.
- superiority
- Can be neutral in ability; arrogance adds an insulting manner.
Opposites
Word family
- arrogant adjective
- Having or showing an exaggerated sense of self-importance.
- arrogantly adverb
- In a proud, dismissive way.
Commonly confused: arrogance or confidence?
arrogance vs confidence
Confidence is belief in one's ability and can be attractive; arrogance dismisses others and is criticized.
Practice
Choose the best word: She has ______, so she interrupts and treats every idea as inferior.
Choose one answer.
Interrupting and treating ideas as inferior fit arrogant disdain. Confidence and poise do not require putting others down, so arrogance is the precise criticism.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “arrogance”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.