humblebrag

verb

hum·​ble·​brag ˈhəm-bəl-ˌbrag How to pronounce humblebrag (audio)
variants or humble-brag
humblebragged or humble-bragged; humblebragging or humble-bragging

transitive + intransitive

: to make a seemingly modest, self-critical, or casual statement or reference that is meant to draw attention to one's admirable or impressive qualities or achievements
People make themselves look smart, humble-bragging about reading what's billed as one of the 20th century's most difficult books.Mark Chiusano
In the study, college students were asked to write down how they'd answer a question about their biggest weakness in a job interview. Results showed that more than three-quarters of participants humblebragged, usually about being a perfectionist or working too hard.Shana Leibowitz
Beyond the angel's wings, there was preening and posing and fake modesty, perhaps best represented when he humblebragged to the audience that his "One Less Lonely Girl" choice had "come all the way from Sweden just to see me."Ben Fisher
humblebrag noun
or humble-brag
At times, the book comes off like a long, rolling humblebrag. Many sections begin with variations on "When I was 29 years old and running for Congress … " or "When I chaired the U.S. Ballistics Missile Threat Commission … ." Adam Sternbergh
Comedian and podcast host Marc Maron has so perfected the art of the humblebrag, even his TV alter ego jokes about how young his girlfriend is. Ray Rahman

Examples of humblebrag in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Sometimes the homeowners are present to humblebrag about, say, the difficulty of securing the permits for such an extreme build; often enough, however, only the architect wants to talk. Judy Berman, Time, 28 Apr. 2020 Meanwhile, Tia humblebrags to the rest of the group about her date with Colton. Anna Moeslein, Glamour, 13 Aug. 2018

Word History

First Known Use

2002, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of humblebrag was in 2002

Dictionary Entries Near humblebrag

Cite this Entry

“Humblebrag.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/humblebrag. Accessed 26 Nov. 2024.

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