Peter

[The noun is humblebraggart. Example: “I’m tired of always being sked for my autograph” ]

In one experiment, researchers at Harvard Business School asked college students to write down how they’d answer a question about their biggest weakness in a job interview. As it turns out, more than three-quarters of participants humblebragged [about] being a perfectionist, working too hard, being too nice, and being too honest. Shana Lebowitz, “Why You Should Never Humblebrag in an Interview,” The (Illinois) State Journal Register, 5/1/2015.)…

A teapot bunker retails for just shy of $40,000; a more pharaonic model, complete with swimming pool and hot tub, bowling alley, and home theater, goes for $8 million. (Annie Lowrey, “The Bunker Magnates Hate To Say They Told You So,” The Atlantic, 9/15/2020.)

This word, when used in the above sense, can also be a synonym for large, enormous, huge, gigantic, massive, giant and colossal…

[This word comes from George Orwell’s novel, 1984.]  The American Petroleum Institute established, in an admirable flourish of newspeak, a lobbying organization called the Global Climate Coalition. It was joined  by trade associations including the coal, electric grid and automobile industries. (Nathaniel Rich, “Losing Earth,” The New York Times, 08/01/2018.)

This word, when used in the above sense, can also be a synonym for misinformation, propaganda, double-talk, half-truth, deception, misleading, ambiguous, or  falsehood…

The bar hushed as one of the most dangerous songs to be found on any karaoke machine began to play: Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody.” Its Freddie Mercury high notes and falsetto rock choruses once led Buzzfeed to warn: “Do not attempt without alcohol.” No Dutch courage was necessary for these singers, though. … These rhapsodists were actually Metropolitan Opera stars. (Michael Cooper, “An Opera Star Walks Into a Karaoke Bar,” The New York Times, 12/13/2017.)

This word, when used in the above sense, can also be a synonym for boldness, confidence, bravery or fearlessness.…

[This word—a portmanteau blending of “anecdote” and “data”–can be used in a neutral sense or in a disparaging sense. The former is when it refers to simply presenting anecdotal evidence based on personal experience or observation and the latter is when the anecdotal evidence is used to suggest that that it is a broadly applicable fact. An example of both is given.]

[Q: Our cat throws up about once a week. What can we do about this? A:]   Based on anecdata from cat owners I have known, a cat’s food can cause frequent upset in our feline friends. (Jolie Kerr, “How to Clean the Most Common Cat Messes,” The New York Times, 11/-07/2018.)

Once upon a time, going to a cinema was the best way to experience seeing a film. … This is, simply put, not the case any longer.  At the risk of resorting to anecdata, I’d like to relate a couple of stories [about movies I recently went to see] and how they tie into larger exhibition issue. (Sonny Bunch, “Hollywood May Blame Movie Theatres For Poor Ticket Sales,” The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 09/29/2017.)

This word can also be a synonym, when used in the above …