Make Your Point > Archived Issues > BLOVIATE

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connect this word to others: We could place the funny word bloviate into a category along with bombastic, perorate, fanfaronade, and braggadocio. What concept unites these words? make your point with... "BLOVIATE" This word was coined in the US in about 1845, probably from the word "blow," as in "to blow hot air:" to lie or exaggerate as you brag or make claims or promises. To bloviate is to talk for a long time in a self-important way--often while lying, bragging, and/or exaggerating. Pronunciation: BLOW vee ate Part of speech: Verb, the intransitive kind: "he just keeps bloviating," "she bloviated about it for an hour." Other forms: bloviated, bloviating, bloviation(s), bloviator(s) How to use it:  Use this rare, funny, informal word to call attention to how annoying it is when people--especially politicians and political commentators--run their mouths. Talk about people bloviating about or over certain topics, bloviating against other topics, bloviating at people or in other people's faces, and just plain bloviating. Or, call people bloviators, or just describe them with the adjective "bloviating:" "These bloviators love to hear themselves talk." "This bloviating presenter needs to wrap it up." examples: "This was one of those occasions when men, especially those of us in the media accustomed to our own freedom to bloviate, were best served trying to listen and learn."    — Andrew O'Hehir, Salon, 29 September 2018 "Flannel-wearing Gen X slackers immediately seized on Clinton as the 'cool' candidate even though he was a middle-aged southern man playing thirty-five-year-old Elvis tunes in Risky Business sunglasses. Conservative bloviator George Will began a decade of screeds about how the 'vulgarian' Clintons were coarsening American culture."    — Ken Jennings, Planet Funny, 2019 has this page helped you understand "bloviate"? Awesome, I'm glad it helped! Thanks for letting me know! If you have any questions about this word, please message me at Liesl@HiloTutor.com. study it: Explain the meaning of "bloviate" without saying "spiel" or "soapbox." try it out: Fill in the blanks: "(Some speech, post, article, book, show, or film) is an exception to the usual bloviating about _____ because it (provides some sort of clarity or insight)." Example: "Beyond the Education Wars is the welcome exception to the usual bloviating about school reform because it injects research about what actually works into this conversation."    — David L. Kirp, Slate, 7 May 2013 If you like, use this space to write. (To save your work, copy and paste it into an email or a document.) before you review, play: Spend 20 seconds or more on the game below. Don’t skip straight to the review—let your working memory empty out first. This month, we're playing Name Those Synonyms! We're enjoying the gracefully written, ultra-authoritative explanations in Funk & Wagnalls Standard Handbook of Synonyms, Antonyms, and Prepositions. In each issue, check out the passage from the book, and see if you can figure out which synonyms are being distinguished. From the previous issue: What two synonyms (<1> and <2>) does the Handbook distinguish below? (They are distinguished from each other and from "fair.") "A <1> statement is meant to be true to the real facts and just to all parties; a fair statement is really so. Fair is applied to conduct; <1> is not; as, fair treatment, 'a fair field, and no favor.' One who is <2> has a fearless and unconstrained truthfulness. As truth is not always agreeable or timely, <1> and <2> have often an objectionable sense; 'to be <1> with you,' 'to be perfectly <2>,' are regarded as sure preludes to something disagreeable, stated without reservation." Answers: <1> is "candid." <2> is "frank." Try this today: What THREE synonyms (<1>, <2>, and <3>) does the Handbook distinguish below?  "There must be harmony and unity to constitute an object or a person really <1>. Thus, we speak of a <1> landscape, a <1> poem. But <1> implies also, in concrete objects, softness of outline and delicacy of mold. <2> expresses in a far less degree that which is pleasing to a refined taste in objects that are comparatively small, slight, and dainty; as, a <2> bonnet, a <2> girl. <3> implies well and harmoniously proportioned, superficially pleasant, with usually the added idea that it is made so by art, breeding, or training, as, a <3> horse, a <3> house. <3> is a term far inferior to <1>; we may even say a <3> villain." Bonus challenge: Recall the fine differences between "desire" and "wish." You can view the answer in this issue. review this word: 1. A near opposite of BLOVIATING is A. DISARMING. B. FRUITFUL. C. TACITURN. 2. Thanks to _____, anyone at all can get online and bloviate to their heart's content. A. Google and Bing B. Amazon and eBay C. Twitter and YouTube 1. C 2. C a final word: I hope you're enjoying Make Your Point. It's made with love. I'm Liesl Johnson, a reading and writing tutor on a mission to explore, illuminate, and celebrate words. From my blog:    36 ways to study words.    Why we forget words, & how to remember them.    How to use sophisticated words without being awkward. To be a sponsor and include your ad in an issue, please contact me at Liesl@HiloTutor.com. Disclaimer: When I write definitions, I use plain language and stick to the words' common, useful applications. If you're interested in authoritative and multiple definitions of words, I encourage you to check a dictionary. Also, because I'm American, I stick to American English when I share words' meanings, usage, and pronunciations; these elements sometimes vary across world Englishes.