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vaunt

(vônt, vŏnt)

v. vaunt·ed, vaunt·ing, vaunts

v.tr.

To speak or write about (something) in a strongly positive way; praise or boast about.

v.intr.

To speak boastfully; brag. See Synonyms at boast¹.

1. A boastful remark.

2. Speech of extravagant self-praise.

[Middle English vaunten, from Old French vanter, from Late Latin vānitāre, to talk frivolously, frequentative of Latin vānāre, from vānus, empty; see euə- in the Appendix of Indo-European roots.]

vaunter n.

vaunting·ly adv.

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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