pre·ten·sion
pri-ˈten(t)-shən 
1
: an allegation of doubtful value : pretext
2
: a claim or an effort to establish a claim
3
: a claim or right to attention or honor because of merit
4
: an aspiration or intention that may or may not reach fulfillment
has serious literary pretensions
5
pre·ten·sion
ˌprē-ˈten(t)-shən
pretensioned; pretensioning; pretensions
Examples of pretension in a Sentence
Noun
He spoke about his achievements without pretension.
I admire his honesty and lack of pretension.
The restaurant offers excellent food without pretension.
Recent Examples on the Web
Matt Robison, Newsweek, 25 Feb. 2025
Rush were almost in danger of becoming too brainy and obscure for their own good by the end of the ’70s, but the band would rein in their pretensions with tighter songwriting in the albums that would follow.
5.
—Al Shipley, SPIN, 12 Feb. 2025
Rabelais points out that there are oddities in the world that cannot fit into any classification scheme, more things in our heaven and earth than are dreamt of in either the medieval pretensions of the summa or the ambitious early modern bibliographic machines.
—Brendan Fitzgerald, Longreads, 27 Dec. 2024
So often a potential title decider, the only team here that have title pretensions are Liverpool.
—Andy Jones, The Athletic, 18 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for pretension
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Noun
Harrington recently appeared on the Cookie Jar Golf podcast and opened up about how the then-21-year-old McIlroy shattered his pretensions as a heavy favorite to win the title.
—Matt Robison, Newsweek, 25 Feb. 2025
Rush were almost in danger of becoming too brainy and obscure for their own good by the end of the ’70s, but the band would rein in their pretensions with tighter songwriting in the albums that would follow.
5.
—Al Shipley, SPIN, 12 Feb. 2025
Rabelais points out that there are oddities in the world that cannot fit into any classification scheme, more things in our heaven and earth than are dreamt of in either the medieval pretensions of the summa or the ambitious early modern bibliographic machines.
—Brendan Fitzgerald, Longreads, 27 Dec. 2024
So often a potential title decider, the only team here that have title pretensions are Liverpool.
—Andy Jones, The Athletic, 18 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for pretension
Cite this Entry
“Pretension.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pretension. Accessed 25 Mar. 2025.
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