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I used to know this word but cannot remember it.



And pretentious isn’t the word I was thinking of.

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12 Answers 12

Perhaps dilettante or dilettantish conveys what you describe.

According to Merriam-Webster Online dictionary:


Plural: dil·et·tantes or dil·et·tan·ti

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Per Collins English Dictionary:


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shallow, adj


"shallow people"; "his arguments seemed shallow and tedious"

Source: English Wordnet

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I literally connected my main SE account just to upvote this! –  Nameless May 21 at 8:56
@Nameless: It's kind of you :-) –  Honza Zidek May 21 at 11:45




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You may have been thinking of a smatterer in some topic.

Of smatterer the OED says:




  • 1893 Jessopp Stud. Recluse Pref. p. ix,

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The first thing that came into my mind was:



showing smug or uncritical satisfaction with oneself or one's achievements:

you can't afford to be complacent about security.


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Is the need to impress others with something that isn't a total fabrication the most important aspect of the word you are searching for?

Is it alright if the word is vulgar slang?

If you answered yes to both, then search no more, here's part of Wikipedia's discussion on the subject matter

Distinguished from lying

"Bullshit" does not necessarily have to be a complete fabrication; with only basic knowledge about a topic, bullshit is often used to make the audience believe that one knows far more about the topic by feigning total certainty or making probable predictions. It may also merely be "filler" or nonsense that, by virtue of its style or wording, gives the impression that it actually means something.

In his essay on the subject, William G. Perry called bull[shit] "relevancies, however relevant, without data" and gave a definition of the verb "to bull[shit]" as follows:


The bullshitter generally either knows the statements are likely false, exaggerated, and in other ways misleading or has no interest in their factual accuracy one way or the other. "Talking bullshit" is thus a lesser form of lying, and is likely to elicit a correspondingly weaker emotional response: whereas an obvious liar may be greeted with derision, outrage, or anger, an exponent of bullshit tends to be dismissed with an indifferent sneer.
Wikipedia: Bullshit

Oxford English Dictionary has this to say



Derivative of


noun, vulgar slang

  • Stupid or untrue talk or writing; nonsense. verb (bullshits, bullshitting, bullshitted)
  • Talk nonsense to (someone), typically to be misleading or deceptive.
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Such a person could be described as an armchair expert or armchair pundit.

From the OED:

[as modifier] Lacking or not involving practical or direct experience of a particular subject or activity: an armchair traveller

Example sentences:

The result is a unique perspective applauded by armchair naturalists in which the stars of the film are also the videographers.

What do these armchair counter-terrorists propose that Moscow should have done?

Almost all other commentary was grotesque - the work of armchair generals.

See also this article: 'Edward Sapir was not an "armchair linguist"!'

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Sciolism is superficial knowledge. ;)

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a definition from a reputable source would enhance your answer, –  P. Obertelli May 19 at 19:47
It would also help if you answered "sciolist" as meaning "one who has a superficial knowledge", since the question was looking for "someone who ..." :-) (Good find, though.) –  Hellion May 19 at 21:38

How about wiseacre?

According to Google:




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