pretension
noun /prɪˈtenʃn/
/prɪˈtenʃn/
[countable, usually plural, uncountable]- the act of trying to appear more important, intelligent, etc. than you are in order to impress other people
虚饰；虚夸 - intellectual pretensions
装作有知识 - The play mocks the pretensions of the new middle class.
这出戏讽刺了新中产阶级的装模作样。 - He spoke without pretension.
他有话直说，不装相。 - She was a bored housewife with social pretensions.
她是一个无聊的家庭主妇，自命不凡。 - She was charmed by his lack of pretension.
他不虚夸，不做作，这让她为之倾倒。
- intellectual pretensions
- a claim to be or to do something
自命；声称；标榜 - pretension to (doing) something a building with no pretensions to architectural merit
没有刻意表现建筑特色的楼房 - pretension (to do something) The movie makes no pretension to reproduce life.
这部电影并未标榜重现了真实生活。
- pretension to (doing) something a building with no pretensions to architectural merit
词源late Middle English: from medieval Latin praetensio(n-), from praetens- ‘alleged’, from the verb praetendere ‘stretch forth, claim’, from prae ‘before’ + tendere ‘stretch’.