arrogantly

arrogantly — adverb

1. showing through your words or actions that you believe you are better, more tale

1.adverbB2
Definition

showing through your words or actions that you believe you are better, more talented, or more important than others, which usually upsets or annoys them

Example

Christopher arrogantly told the hiring panel that their questions were beneath him.

arrogantly + tell + that-clause — asserting superiority over an authority figure

A visiting scholar arrogantly dismissed the local team's years of research with a casual wave.

arrogantly + dismiss + object — dismissive rejection of others' work

Common collocations
  • speak arrogantly
  • act arrogantly
  • behave arrogantly
  • arrogantly declare
  • arrogantly claim
  • arrogantly dismiss
  • arrogantly tell
  • arrogantly announce
Synonyms
  • haughtily

    more formal; suggests cold, distant disdain rather than active rudeness

  • conceitedly

    focuses on excessive self-admiration rather than behaviour towards others

  • smugly

    implies self-satisfaction over a specific small achievement, often annoying others

  • proudly

    usually positive — marks satisfaction in an achievement, not rude superiority

Antonyms
  • humbly

    showing a modest opinion of one's own importance

  • modestly

    not bragging or drawing attention to one's abilities

Grammar Patterns

modifies verb

modifies clause

placed before main verb or at end of clause

Usage Note

Modifies verbs of speech (tell, declare, claim, announce) and behaviour (walk, smile, act, push). Typically placed before the main verb for a direct judgement on the action, or after the verb when the manner of behaviour is the main focus.

Common Mistakes

She proudly dismissed their concerns' (when meaning she was rude about it).
She arrogantly dismissed their concerns.
'proudly' has a positive connotation of satisfaction; 'arrogantly' implies rude, dismissive superiority.
He walked into the room arrogant.
He walked into the room arrogantly.
an adjective describes a noun; an adverb is needed to describe how an action is done.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: adverb/1

Proudly, haughtily, conceitedly, and smugly all describe ways of showing self-importance, but they differ in tone and context. Proudly has a positive or neutral sense of satisfaction in an achievement ('She proudly showed her medal'). Haughtily is more formal and suggests cold, distant disdain for others. Conceitedly focuses on excessive self-admiration — the person thinks very highly of themselves rather than putting others down. Smugly implies self-satisfaction about a small success, often in a way that annoys people. Arrogantly is the broadest and most negative — it combines the idea of feeling superior with openly rude or dismissive behaviour towards others, as in 'He arrogantly interrupted the speaker to correct a minor point.'

proudly ↗haughtilyconceitedlysmugly

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

  • so arrogantly
  • rather arrogantly
  • quite arrogantly

Phrases

  • speak arrogantly about
  • act arrogantly towards
  • dismiss arrogantly as

Etymology

LatinFrenchEnglish

Comes from the Latin verb 'arrogare' meaning 'to claim for oneself', formed from 'ad-' (to) and 'rogare' (ask). In Latin, 'arrogans' described someone who claimed more for themself than was fair. The word passed into English through French during the 14th century, first as the adjective 'arrogant' and later forming the adverb 'arrogantly'.