Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day

bloviate


Listen Later

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 21, 2025 is:

bloviate • \BLOH-vee-ayt\  • verb

To bloviate is to speak or write in an arrogant tone and with more words than are necessary.

// The podcaster tends to bloviate endlessly on topics about which he is not particularly knowledgeable.

See the entry >

Examples:

"While other characters bloviate about their lives, Barbara is a much more internal character, her quietness making her seem all the more an outsider in her hometown." — Kristy Puchko, Mashable.com, 13 June 2025

Did you know?

Warren G. Harding is often linked to the word bloviate, but to him the word wasn't insulting; it simply meant "to spend time idly." Harding used the word often in that "hanging around" sense, but during his tenure as the 29th U.S. President (1921-23), he became associated with the "verbose" sense of bloviate, as his speeches tended to be on the long-winded side. Although he is sometimes credited with having coined the word, it's more likely that Harding picked it up from local slang while hanging around with his boyhood buddies in Ohio in the late 1800s. The term likely comes from a combination of the word blow plus the suffix -ate.



...more
View all episodesView all episodes
Download on the App Store

Merriam-Webster's Word of the DayBy Merriam-Webster

  • 4.5
  • 4.5
  • 4.5
  • 4.5
  • 4.5

4.5

1,252 ratings


More shows like Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day

View all
Modern Love by The New York Times

Modern Love

8,834 Listeners

TED Talks Daily by TED

TED Talks Daily

11,168 Listeners

Grammar Girl Quick and Dirty Tips for Better Writing by QuickAndDirtyTips.com

Grammar Girl Quick and Dirty Tips for Better Writing

2,842 Listeners

60 Minutes by CBS News

60 Minutes

2,734 Listeners

IELTS Energy English 7+ by Lindsay McMahon, Jessica Beck, Aubrey Carter

IELTS Energy English 7+

406 Listeners

Science Quickly by Scientific American

Science Quickly

1,390 Listeners

Let's Master English! An English podcast for English learners by Coach Shane

Let's Master English! An English podcast for English learners

213 Listeners

All Ears English Podcast by Lindsay McMahon and Michelle Kaplan

All Ears English Podcast

2,223 Listeners

Daily Easy English Expression Podcast by Coach Shane

Daily Easy English Expression Podcast

833 Listeners

Real English Conversations Podcast – Real English for Global Professionals | Speak Clearly & Confidently at Work by Real English Conversations: With Curtis Davies - English Podcast

Real English Conversations Podcast – Real English for Global Professionals | Speak Clearly & Confidently at Work

392 Listeners

Something You Should Know by Mike Carruthers | OmniCast Media

Something You Should Know

4,221 Listeners

Life Kit by NPR

Life Kit

4,782 Listeners

Think Fast Talk Smart: Communication Techniques by Matt Abrahams, Think Fast Talk Smart

Think Fast Talk Smart: Communication Techniques

796 Listeners

No Stupid Questions by Freakonomics Radio + Stitcher

No Stupid Questions

3,626 Listeners

Business English from All Ears English by Lindsay McMahon

Business English from All Ears English

75 Listeners