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ostent

Pronunciation: /ˈɒstɛnt/

The English word “ostent” has 5 meanings listed here.

verb

  1. To make an ambitious display of; to exhibit or show boastingly; to ostentate.

noun

  1. A display, an exhibition; an appearance, a manifestation.
  2. A boastful, ostentatious display or exhibition.
  3. A portent, a token.
  4. One sixtieth of an hour: a minute (60 seconds).

Etymology

From Middle French ostenter (“to make an ostentatious display of”), or directly from its etymon Latin ostentāre (“to exhibit, present, show; to show off”), frequentative of ostendere (“to exhibit, show”), from ob- (prefix meaning ‘against; towards’) + tendere (“to extend, stretch; to distend”) (from Proto-Indo-European *tend- (“to extend, stretch”)). Doublet of ostentate.

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