Define Pretentious Meaning

Behaving in an attention-seeking manner via presenting oneself on the surface as being intelligent, provocative, important, avant-garde, humorous or significant, yet harboring ulterior motives, typically involving some form of personal gratification or material gain (e.g. advancement in social status, career, wealth, etc.).

Note that using this word is often conflated to be a pretentious act in and of itself, as this word is frequently used as a way to easily discredit people, works of art, ideas or statements while simultaneously boosting one's own status.

Trying to sound intelligent by using long, complicated words, even though you don't know what they mean.

Definitely two meanings, and they really depend on the attitudes of the user, and what the user thinks is fake or real. So:

A) "Pretentious" can be a useful phrase to describe something that is fake or pretend, or somebody who is pretending in order to conform. Sometimes it is still used that way.

B) Its meaning has also become completely the opposite. In the English-speaking world, "pretentious" has become a catch-all phrase to criticize anything or anyone that is vaguely heartfelt, intellectual, earnest, sincere, artistic, unconventional, nonconformist, non-commercial, or not on TV, on Youtube or in the supermarket.

displaying a self-image of being "special", "intelligent", and "different". not content with being average, and striving to be the best at everything and grabbing all attention. speaking in cliches. having no humility or originality.

A word that describes the people that use it

adj.
1. A word that is often abused by pseudo-intellectuals.
2. Used to arrogantly display one's own pretentious tendencies by criticizing masterly works or people (e.g. art-rock bands--see. Radiohead)
3. Evokes strong evidence of hypocrisy in one's nature.
4. A word that, once applied, unfairly destroys geniuses and their works with one swift and cheap movement of affectation.

Being a stuck up tool.

When people mention the last thing they read in school as if it was obvious, and as if you'd have to be completely stupid not to know what they're talking about.

Also when people talk like they're giving a formal speech.

the majority of people who make definitions to other words on this site.

you don't need to say mean things to eachother just to be different. accept different opinions and learn how to do it in a more mature manner.

What people who are naturally smarter and better than others are often seen, mistakenly, as being. (Commonly attributed to British people, for obvious reasons).