Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

bombastic

/bɑmˈbæs.tɪk/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.63 in modern English

Syllables: bom-bas-tic
IPA: /bɑmˈbæs.tɪk/

17

Scrabble Score

9

Letters

3

Syllables

8

Unique Chars

Meaning

adj

showy in speech and given to using flowery or elaborate terms; grandiloquent; pompous

adj

High‐sounding but with little meaning.

adj

Loud, aggressive, highly exaggerated, or explosive in manner or delivery; over‐the‐top.

Colloquial

adj

Inflated, overfilled.

Archaic

Example Sentences

"Dorsett came up the stairs, buggy whip in hand. He bustled into the office in his usual self‐important way. Frank noticed that the old clerk sat down on him promptly. He was not one bit impressed with the bombastic visitor from Greenville."

Etymology

From bombast (“padding, stuffing”) + -ic, 18th century. Sense evolution possibly influenced by unrelated bomb and bombard; see also bombard phrase.

Word Breakdown

Suffix: bombast

Regional Pronunciation

American English: /bɑmˈbæs.tɪk/
British English: /bɒmˈbæs.tɪk/

Usage

Inflected Forms

more bombastic (comparative) most bombastic (superlative) bombastical (alternative, archaic) bombastick (alternative, obsolete) bumbastic (alternative, obsolete) bumbastical (alternative, obsolete)

Derived Forms

nonbombastic unbombastic

Frequently Paired Words

bombast bombaster bombastically

Synonyms

circumlocutory diffuse periphrastic palaverous pleonastic prolix rigmarole sesquipedalian verbose wordy airy arrogant

Antonyms

brief concise crisp laconic lapidary short-winded succinct tight to the point taut terse

Rhymes With

fantastic plastic enthusiastic drastic sarcastic elastic scholastic stochastic monastic dynastic spastic thermoplastic

Questions

How do you pronounce bombastic?: The recorded pronunciation is /bɑmˈbæs.tɪk/.
What does bombastic mean?: showy in speech and given to using flowery or elaborate terms; grandiloquent; pompous
Where does bombastic come from?: From bombast (“padding, stuffing”) + -ic, 18th century. Sense evolution possibly influenced by unrelated bomb and bombard; see also bombard phrase.

How to pronounce bombastic

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “bombastic”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/bɑmˈbæs.tɪk/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
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Repeat and practice — Say “bombastic” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.