ostentation
showy display meant to impress
Root
- ostent: show, display, or hold out for view
Other words with the ostent root
- ostensible: stated or appearing to be true, but possibly not real
- ostentatious: showy or pretentious
Ostentation is display with an audience in mind: showing off so others will notice.
The party had more ostentation than warmth, with gold chairs and almost no conversation.
Ostentation is not beauty by itself. It is beauty, wealth, knowledge, or virtue performed too loudly. The display keeps checking whether people are watching.