swagger

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   a conspicuously confident, arrogant, or self-important manner of walking or behaving

   He crossed the room with an exaggerated swagger.

2. 2
   verb

   to walk or behave with ostentatious confidence or arrogance

   The actor swaggered onto the stage as though he owned it.

3. 3
   adj

   dated British informal: stylish, impressive, or fashionable

   The magazine praised the hotel's swagger new dining room.

Appears in

Simplified etymology

Swagger appears to have developed from swag, whose earliest meaning was “a bulging bag.” Swag later became a verb meaning “to sway or sag,” and swagger extended this physical idea to an arrogant or self-important way of walking or behaving.

A frequentative formation from swag, 'to sway or move heavily.' The movement sense developed into an ostentatious strut and then into arrogant self-confidence. The dated adjective extended the same display to stylish or impressive things.

Topics

External links

• Google Images
• Cambridge Dictionary
• Wiktionary