different between distinguished vs pretentious

English

Etymology

• From distinguish +? -ed.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /d?s?t???w??t/
• Hyphenation: dis?tin?guished

Adjective

distinguished (comparative more distinguished, superlative most distinguished)

1. celebrated, well-known or eminent because of past achievements; prestigious

   The lecture was attended by many distinguished mathematicians.

2. Having a dignified appearance or demeanor

   Her father was a distinguished gentleman, albeit a poor one.

3. (mathematics) Specified, noted.

   Let X be a topological space with a distinguished point p.

Synonyms

• (celebrated): eminent, exceptional, remarkable; see also Thesaurus:famous or Thesaurus:notable
• (dignified appearance): grand, imposing
• (specified):

Antonyms

• mediocre

Translations

Verb

distinguished

1. simple past tense and past participle of distinguish

English

Alternative forms

• prætentious (rare, pedantic or (esp. self-referentially) humorous)

Etymology

From French prétentieux, from prétention, from Latin praet?nsus (“false or hypocritical profession”), past participle of praetend?.

Note that pretentious is spelled with a ‘t’, unlike related pretense, pretension. This is due to the French spelling: *-sious does not occur as an English suffix, though -sion and -tion both do.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /p???t?n??s/

Adjective

pretentious (comparative more pretentious, superlative most pretentious)

1. Intended to impress others; ostentatious.

   Her dress was obviously more pretentious than comfortable.

2. Marked by an unwarranted claim to importance or distinction.

   Their song titles are pretentious in the context of their basic lyrics.

Synonyms

• poseur
• See also Thesaurus:arrogant

Antonyms

• unpretentious

Derived terms

• pretentiously
• pretentiousness

Related terms

• pretend
• pretender
• pretense
• pretension

Translations

References

• pretentious in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.
• pretentious in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.
• pretentious at OneLook Dictionary Search

Anagrams

• postuterine