What do you call someone who is mediocre at best on a variety of fields but likes to pose as a polished and cultured person?
I’m not sure if I’m explaining this well. This person has a “I’m better than you” or “I know better and say it best” attitude, likes to pass as sensible and intellectual but when you contrast how they try to come across with what they actually do, how indifferent they are to others, and the quality of the skills they like to boast about it doesn’t add up. It’s all superficial, there is no substance to them, and no apparent self awareness ever of any of these shortcomings.
It’s like a special brand of “full of it”. Is there a word for it?
Cunt
Pretentious
The type that usually likes to talk all the time about any subject, because everything has to be about them? That spews the biggest nonsense with great confidence? I usually call them “manager material” or “walking Dunning-Krüger”.
Perhaps “sophomoric”
Pompous
Dilettante is the word you want here, I think.
Is dilettante connoted as negatively as the OP depicts the person?
Asking this as a non-native English speaker and because in French dilettante means ‘someone doing an activity for the sheer pleasure/satisfaction they get out of doing it.’
I’ve only ever heard it used negatively; in English it has the connotation of someone who enjoys being know to do the activity but isn’t invested in the activity itself; someone who isn’t serious about the activity.
I’ve read the definition and I guess it’s not always as overtly negative, but that’s easy to fix with one or two extra words, ie. “self-centered dilettante”
From looking up more usage, as it isn’t a word I often hear, it seems by nature to be neutral, but context can direct it to be more positive or negative.
If I heard someone say it in conversation, it would put a lot of emphasis on the tone of the conversation to take the meaning. I’d imagine it being used more sarcastically, as it sounds like a fancy word for someone with shallow knowledge of a subject.
“John won’t shut up about that trendy new art exhibit.”
“Oh yeah, he’s a real dilettante all of a sudden!” 😒
John had never shown interest in art before, but now that he saw it and either liked it or pretended to like it to show off his “higher appreciation of culture” than his friends now he keeps talking about it even though he doesn’t know anything about art.
I wouldn’t say it’s impossible to use in a positive manner, but being dismissive feels more likely. If someone used it that way I’d feel I was potentially missing out on a joke at first.
The French sense is how the word was originally used, and it can still be used that way. But the primary sense now is about the superficial nature of the person’s knowledge or interest. So it’s negative, but not as negative as the word OP is seeking.
Thx, I understand that and it goes along the context also mentioned in another comment.
Thx everyone for the clarification :)
I think you nailed this one. Poser was my first thought, but a poser is someone who fakes an interest to fit in. Dilettante has that gatekeeping aspect to it, which seems important to OP’s description.
Here’s an example usage from cambridge dictionary:
Is he a pretentious postmodern dilettante barely concealing his limitations behind mannered overwrought wordplay and the needless over-ornamentation of derivative rock songs and genre pastiches?
Yes, yes Cambridge, that’s right
Exactly yes thanks. Gatekeeping is one of those words I tend to forget it exists
I agree with this, but it lacks the ‘pretentious air’ about the individual. A charlatan or poser equally partially describes this. This actually seems to be a missing term.
Yesss yes yes yes I think you’ve nailed it thank you! I didn’t know this word, I’ve read the definition and it suits quite well.
Poser
A confident, average, but nonetheless well-rounded individual with broad interests?
Seems like the word you’re looking for is ‘normal’.
Unless there’s some other quality you’re not describing like if they’re unable to admit when they’re wrong or they lie or exaggerate their skills, they seem like a pretty nice person to me who just for whatever reason doesn’t specialize in any one thing, which tbf is far more normal for people than otherwise and frankly far more sociable.
You seem a bit jealous of and upset at this person judging by your other comments ITT. What do you have against them, other than them ‘liking to pose as an intellectual’ - which I assume just stands for “they like facts”?
I think the point you might be missing from the OP, is that the person in question doesn’t actually possess this knowledge or skill, but instead of being humble and admitting the gaps in their knowledge, perhaps asking a question or two when they don’t understand, they just plow ahead.
I know people like this. It’s not malicious I don’t think, maybe it’s more of a defense mechanism? They don’t want to look uninformed, so they try to fill the gaps in their knowledge with assumptions. Maybe they’re right a decent amount of the time, or close enough to fool people who aren’t knowledgeable on the subject. But people who are knowledgeable, will recognize what they’re doing, and the lack of humility comes across as arrogance, even though that may not strictly be the case.
It’s normal to know a lot of stuff and like a wide variety of things. But you need to be humble when you don’t know something.
When I don’t know something for sure, I like to say “I think it’s this way, but I could be wrong.” Or something like that. Or heck, if someone else has the knowledge and skills I don’t, I’m right up there asking questions, I want to learn. Maybe I’ll try to impress them with what little I do know on the subject by commenting or asking questions in a way that shows I understand what they’re talking about, because we all want to have self worth. But faking it isn’t cool, and can be harmful, or just annoying.
Oh yeah for sure,
I think it is what in Spain we call an “enterao”, but I could be wrong.
I’m not sure how to translate it, maybe as “a heard about”, a guy that always has heard about whatever and thinks his info is much better or knows a better way to do anything.
En Chile es “alumbra(d)o”, que se da “brillo” o importancia.
Or a “fantasma/casper”
That’s a good one too. Wow, I now realise that I haven’t used it in years.
Bombastic? Pretentious? Braggart?
I second pretentious.
I think pretentious is the closest match but it’s still lacking something else. Another commenter suggested two words instead of one, I guess that might be the way to go
“Pretentious douchebag” will probably fit the bill.
I mean it could be just some flavor of narcissism or being full of it.
Or it also could just be someone with adhd or changing interests but trying to find their way in life. That could explain the breadth of things. Maybe they’re struggling and were raised to be too proud of themselves. These things don’t make their behavior less annoying but they might make it more understandable. Like even if it is narcissism, that is largely a learned behavior. I guess i would just try to be kind instead of trying to find 1-2 words to sum up their existence
It’s alright, they may be neurodivergent as I am as well, and everyone has a story and a reason to be and do etc. I’m aware this isn’t all there is to this person, I’m not trying to find two words to sum up their existence, just the part of their existence that rubs me off the wrong way.
I actually like that the right word is as basic as poser.
They’d like to have a special name, but they’re literally just a bog-standard poser.
a know-it-all maybe, which I guess is three words, but the lil stripes inbetween are masking it
If you are so confident it is wrong, why don’t you expose its weak knowledge base?
An arrogant hypocrite who’s not nearly as clever as they think they are? A silly man pretending to be otherwise? Me?!
Was gonna say, I’m not throwing stones in this glass house.
