ˌä]stən.ˈtāshən sometimes ˌȯ] or ]ˌsten-\ noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle English ostentacioun, from Middle French ostentation, from Latin ostentation-, ostentatio, from ostentatus (past participle of ostentare to display ostentatiously) + -ion-, -io -ion
1.
a. : the act of making an ambitious display : vain and unnecessary show especially for the purpose of attracting attention, admiration, or envy : pretentiousness
a woman brought up in the traditions of a modesty so proud that it scorns ostentation — Arnold Bennett
b. : overly elaborate embellishment especially in art : floridity
architecture … characterized by ostentation and ornamental frills of the Victorian era — American Guide Series: Texas
stepped over the … boundary which divides wealth from ostentation , eloquence from pedantry, art from technique — Gilbert Highet
interpret the inmost thoughts of the composer, and to reproduce them without sentimentality and ostentation — A.E.Wier
2. archaic : the act of exhibiting or showing : display
maintain a mourning ostentation — Shakespeare