Synonyms of vain

120 similar words · 2 opposite words

Another word for vain is arrogant. Other synonyms of vain are cocky, slight, pompous, conceited and presumptuous. The opposite of vain is modest.

Synonyms and similar words for vain

adjectiveOverly proud of oneself, especially concerning appearance; having a high opinion of one's own...

conceitedHaving an excessively favourable opinion of one's abilities, appearance, etc.; egotistical and vain.
flatulentEmpty; vain.
puffed up
inflated
airy
arrogantHaving excessive pride in oneself, often with contempt or disrespect for others.
chesty informal
authoritarian
biggityConceited, uppity.
big-headed slang
blustery
turgescent formalBecoming turgid or swollen.
boastfulTending to boast or brag.
lordly
bombasticShowy in speech and given to using flowery or elaborate terms; grandiloquent; pompous.
cockyOverly confident; arrogant and boastful.
disdainfulShowing contempt or scorn; having a pronounced lack of concern for others viewed as unworthy.
domineeringOverbearing, dictatorial or authoritarian.
egotistical
entitled
flauntingThat flaunts; showy or gaudy.
full of oneselfEgotistical, believing oneself to be superior to others; preoccupied with one's own work, interests, point of view, etc.
grandiose
hanktyOverbearing; pompous.
haughtyConveying in demeanour the assumption of superiority; disdainful, supercilious.
high-handedUsing power or authority without proper consideration for the feelings or rights of others.
high-hat colloquialDisdainful; haughty.
high and mighty
highfalutin colloquialSelf-important, pompous; arrogant or egotistical.
hoity-toity colloquial
holier-than-thouHypocritically or self-righteously pious; sanctimonious; smugly morally superior.
hubristicOf or relating to hubris (“excessive arrogance or pride, or presumption”); hence, overly arrogant or proud, or...
hubristicalHubristic.
imperious
insolentRude.
la-di-da
ostentatious
overbearingOverly bossy, domineering, arrogant, forceful, intense, or annoying.
overweeningUnduly confident; (sometimes also) arrogant.
pompousAffectedly grand, solemn or self-important.
presumptuousMaking unwarranted presumptions or assumptions, often out of arrogance or excessive self-confidence, and thus exceeding...
pretentious
priggishLike a prig.
sanctimoniousMaking a show of being morally better than others, especially hypocritically pious.
self-importantHaving, or behaving as if having, too high an opinion of one's own importance.
snobbish slangHaving the property of being a snob; arrogant and pretentious; smugly superior or dismissive of perceived inferiors.
snooty slangHaughty, pompous, snobbish; inclined to turn up one's nose.
snotty slang
stout
stuck up slang
superciliousArrogantly superior; showing contemptuous indifference; haughty.
thrasonicThrasonical.
thrasonicalBoastful, bragging, vainglorious.
toplofticalHaughty, hoity-toity, superior.
toploftySelf-important, haughty.
tumid
turgid
uppish
uppityPresumptuous, above oneself, self-important; arrogant, snobbish, haughty.
uppySynonym of uppity.
upstageHaughty, aloof.
buggish dialectal, obsoleteUppity.
glorious obsoleteExcessively proud or boastful.
haught obsoleteHaughty.
haut obsolete
orgulous archaic, literaryArrogant, haughty, proud.

adjectiveHaving no real substance, value, or importance; empty; void; worthless; unsatisfying.

idleOf no importance; useless; worthless; vain; trifling; thoughtless; silly.
valuelessHaving no value; worthless.
baseOf low value or degree.
contemptible
foolish
for the birds informalNot deserving serious consideration; unimportant; useless, worthless.
futile
frivolousOf little weight or importance; not worth notice; slight; trivial.
ignorable
immaterialOf no importance; inconsequential, insignificant, unimportant.
inconsequentialHaving no consequence; not consequential; of little importance.
inconsiderableToo unimportant to be worthy of attention.
indifferentNot making a difference; without significance or importance.
insignificant
like a fart in a windstorm
meager
mean
minor
miserableWretched; worthless; mean; contemptible.
negligibleAble to be neglected, ignored or excluded from consideration; too small or unimportant to be of concern.
nothingburger informalOf less importance than its treatment suggests; insignificant, unimportant; also, bland or unremarkable in appearance...
nondescript
nullInsignificant.
paltry
pettyHaving little or no importance.
picayuneOf little consequence; small and of little importance; petty, trivial.
picayunishPetty; paltry; mean.
piddlingInsignificant, negligible, paltry, trivial, useless.
piddlySmall, inconsequential, or not worth spending time on.
pissantInsignificant or unimportant.
pissass vulgarWorthless, backward, undeveloped, nondescript, reprehensible, or small.
pitiful
pointless
silly
slightMinor; small in amount.
ticky-tacky USInferior, minor, trivial.
tin-pot informalInsignificant or minor, especially in an amusing and petty manner.
triflingTrivial, or of little importance.
trivial
two-bit US, slangInsignificant or worthless.
unimportantPetty; not important or noteworthy.
unweightyNot weighty.
worthlessHaving no worth or use; without value.
wretchedOf an insignificant, mean, or poor nature; miserable, paltry, worthless.
bastardlyOf no use or purpose; useless; worthless.
cacky UK, slangWorthless or no-good; rubbishy.
cocking vulgarOffensive or worthless.
cruddy slangCrummy, lousy, worthless.
draffishWorthless; draffy.
dreckishDrecky; worthless.
dreckyTrashy, worthless.
fucking vulgarOffensive, annoying or worthless.
garbageyLike garbage; trashy, worthless.
good-for-naughtSynonym of good-for-nothing.

Opposite of vain

adjectiveMore antonyms

modestNot bragging or boasting about oneself or one's achievements; unpretentious, humble.
nonnarcissisticNot narcissistic.

Meaning of vain

adjective Overly proud of oneself, especially concerning appearance; having a high opinion of one's own accomplishments with slight reason.
adjective Having no real substance, value, or importance; empty; void; worthless; unsatisfying.
adjective Effecting no purpose; pointless, futile.

Full definition of vain

vain in other languages

Questions about synonyms of vain

What is another word for vain?: Vain has 120 synonyms on Word.ws, such as arrogant, cocky, slight, pompous, conceited, presumptuous, worthless and haughty.
What is the opposite of vain?: The opposite of vain is modest.
What does vain mean?: Vain means overly proud of oneself, especially concerning appearance; having a high opinion of one's own accomplishments with slight reason.

Adapted from Wiktionary: vain (page history and authors) and the entries of the words listed. Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws grouped the synonyms and antonyms by meaning and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated: 2026-09-02

Cite this page: “Synonyms of vain.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/synonyms/vain. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.