as in cocky
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1
as in boasting
to praise or express pride in one's own possessions, qualities, or accomplishments often to excess
I, too, would swagger if I'd won first place in the bowling tournament
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in strutting
to walk with exaggerated arm and leg movements
hoping to impress the women at the bar, the young man confidently swaggered across the room
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples of swaggering
Joshua Kloke,
New York Times,
24 June 2026
Lander, who became beloved by DSA members after helping Mamdani beat Cuomo, worked with the mayor’s ad team for a campaign that effectively turned them into a comedy duo — a dorky Jewish dad and a swaggering Muslim mayor, both critical of the Israeli government.
—
David Weigel,
semafor.com,
23 June 2026
The group went on to earn national and international acclaim before its swaggering leader, Country Dick Montana, died on stage midway through a 1995 show in Whistler, Canada.
—
George Varga,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
19 June 2026
Their shows had always been wild—the music’s raw noise and Love’s swaggering stage presence inspired catharsis.
—
Quinn Moreland,
Pitchfork,
14 June 2026
With venom and shrewd determination, Nicholson paints his character as a swaggering monster who milks every syllable of his dialogue with vitriolic relish.
—
Eric Farwell,
Entertainment Weekly,
12 June 2026
New Yorkers will recall the assholic behavior of the Yankees owner George Steinbrenner, a swaggering builder of ships, who always seemed to delight in humiliating his managers and players.
—
David Remnick,
New Yorker,
11 June 2026
Michael Imperioli's swaggering, erratic Christopher was one of the show's most iconic characters.
—
Sophie Dodd,
PEOPLE,
10 June 2026
That single and its follow-up had a soft landing in the marketplace, and Lizzo re-armed herself with last year’s My Face Hurts From Smiling, a swaggering mixtape that resulted from a two-week creative burst.
—
Maura Johnston,
Rolling Stone,
9 June 2026
Sam Stone,
Bon Appetit Magazine,
12 May 2026
The advertisement opened with a backside shot of a man clothed in Levi’s jeans, a western shirt and leather gloves, swaggering up to a pair of saloon doors.
—
Jack Armstrong,
USA Today,
15 Apr. 2026
Don the swaggering employee needs to learn a lesson about gender identity.
—
Christopher Arnott,
Hartford Courant,
15 Mar. 2026
And Jordan's performances as Smoke and Stack are indeed confident and distinctive, not just in their different sartorial choices but in their mannerisms, with the actor excelling at portraying both Smoke's stoic practicality and Stack's swaggering charm.
—
Ken Simmons,
Entertainment Weekly,
12 Mar. 2026
Two swaggering outlaws roll into a mining town and unleash a wave of cruelty.
—
Melanie Goodfellow,
Deadline,
20 Jan. 2026
The timing of such self-reflection was notable, on the direct horizon of an AFC divisional-round matchup against a Bills team that’ll require calls-to-the-wall swaggering from Payton.
—
Luca Evans,
Denver Post,
16 Jan. 2026
This skinny kid from Norman, Oklahoma, swaggering up and down the court.
—
Tyler Estep,
AJC.com,
9 Jan. 2026
Die a hero, or live long enough to become Gen Z’s swaggering grandfather.
—
Steven Zeitchik,
HollywoodReporter,
28 Dec. 2025
Adjective
The clip of Cawley speaking about Marsch was used to highlight what some believe is the downside of Marsch’s swaggering attitude.
—
Joshua Kloke,
New York Times,
24 June 2026
Lander, who became beloved by DSA members after helping Mamdani beat Cuomo, worked with the mayor’s ad team for a campaign that effectively turned them into a comedy duo — a dorky Jewish dad and a swaggering Muslim mayor, both critical of the Israeli government.
—
David Weigel,
semafor.com,
23 June 2026
The group went on to earn national and international acclaim before its swaggering leader, Country Dick Montana, died on stage midway through a 1995 show in Whistler, Canada.
—
George Varga,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
19 June 2026
Their shows had always been wild—the music’s raw noise and Love’s swaggering stage presence inspired catharsis.
—
Quinn Moreland,
Pitchfork,
14 June 2026
With venom and shrewd determination, Nicholson paints his character as a swaggering monster who milks every syllable of his dialogue with vitriolic relish.
—
Eric Farwell,
Entertainment Weekly,
12 June 2026
New Yorkers will recall the assholic behavior of the Yankees owner George Steinbrenner, a swaggering builder of ships, who always seemed to delight in humiliating his managers and players.
—
David Remnick,
New Yorker,
11 June 2026
Michael Imperioli's swaggering, erratic Christopher was one of the show's most iconic characters.
—
Sophie Dodd,
PEOPLE,
10 June 2026
That single and its follow-up had a soft landing in the marketplace, and Lizzo re-armed herself with last year’s My Face Hurts From Smiling, a swaggering mixtape that resulted from a two-week creative burst.
—
Maura Johnston,
Rolling Stone,
9 June 2026
Verb
After all those swaggering herbal notes faded, tasters said Roku finished with breezy floral qualities—lavender and rose.
—
Sam Stone,
Bon Appetit Magazine,
12 May 2026
The advertisement opened with a backside shot of a man clothed in Levi’s jeans, a western shirt and leather gloves, swaggering up to a pair of saloon doors.
—
Jack Armstrong,
USA Today,
15 Apr. 2026
Don the swaggering employee needs to learn a lesson about gender identity.
—
Christopher Arnott,
Hartford Courant,
15 Mar. 2026
And Jordan's performances as Smoke and Stack are indeed confident and distinctive, not just in their different sartorial choices but in their mannerisms, with the actor excelling at portraying both Smoke's stoic practicality and Stack's swaggering charm.
—
Ken Simmons,
Entertainment Weekly,
12 Mar. 2026
Two swaggering outlaws roll into a mining town and unleash a wave of cruelty.
—
Melanie Goodfellow,
Deadline,
20 Jan. 2026
The timing of such self-reflection was notable, on the direct horizon of an AFC divisional-round matchup against a Bills team that’ll require calls-to-the-wall swaggering from Payton.
—
Luca Evans,
Denver Post,
16 Jan. 2026
This skinny kid from Norman, Oklahoma, swaggering up and down the court.
—
Tyler Estep,
AJC.com,
9 Jan. 2026
Die a hero, or live long enough to become Gen Z’s swaggering grandfather.
—
Steven Zeitchik,
HollywoodReporter,
28 Dec. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for swaggering
Adjective
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Lanky with striking red hair and a cocky demeanor, Clapper was dogged and respected by his fellow cops.
-
Thanks to one impossibly cocky fighter pilot named Maverick, Reagan-era America never felt better about itself — or its military might.
Verb
-
Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra Android Smartwatch The Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra dives in deep with you, with a rugged titanium body boasting 10ATM water resistance, ready for open-water ocean swimming.
-
Kane feels like a must-have at this stage in the competition, with Haaland unlikely to disrupt that, with Kylian Mbappe and Lionel Messi also boasting six goals in the tournament at the time of writing.
Verb
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Tyra Banks is strutting forward with plans to revive America's Next Top Model — and Entertainment Weekly has exclusively learned that a contestant generated with artificial intelligence isn't off the table for the next cast.
-
But, the West Germans looked like dogs chasing cars as the swift Algerians, smarting from the Germans’ strutting arrogance, flowed to a 2-1 upset at Gijón that brought appreciation for Algeria’s audacity and artistry.
Adjective
-
Clive was big, and bombastic, and brave, and full of ideas, and just believed, believed, believed, believed.
-
There’s a strange irony—though, perhaps, little surprise—that this is how the bombastic Tory politico is now spending his time.
Verb
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The old corporate flex of bragging about 80-hour workweeks, where busyness is the proxy for importance, and volume serves as the proof of commitment, is more and more a liability in today’s times.
-
Elon Musk is now bragging that SpaceX will make epic investments en route to unleashing stupendous results.
Verb
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This prancing herd of wild mustangs can be spotted from the river, on a kayak or inner tube.
-
The music video shows Rodrigo prancing around the actual Palace of Versailles, in a controversial babydoll dress singing about a boy looking like an angel on its walls.
Adjective
-
Defense witnesses pointed to boastful teens, fireworks-like flashes and uncertain ignition points, with an expert arguing that fireworks were the likely cause and that prosecutors lack proof that a lighter sparked the blaze.
-
Chatter about Azik’s famous delens abounds, as does boastful talk about how Monica Bellucci’s family hails from the same part of Nalchik.
Verb
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At around the same time down in London, England’s vice-captain Harry Brook was striding to the crease to join Root at 40-3.
-
Before Kaia Gerber and Olivia Rodrigo became inseparable from their Repetto ballet pumps, Gainsbourg was striding around in the brand’s lace-up Zizi style–now the shoe of choice for art school girls (and a certain Marc Jacobs).
Cite this Entry
“Swaggering.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/swaggering. Accessed 5 Jul. 2026.
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