1
: a river steamship containing a theater and carrying a troupe of actors to give plays at river communities
2
: one who tries to attract attention by conspicuous behavior
showboated; showboating; showboats
: to behave in a conspicuous or ostentatious manner : show off
showboater
noun
Synonyms
Examples of showboat in a Sentence
Noun
The fans like him, but the other players think he's a showboat.
Verb
She was showboating for the cameras when she tripped and fell.
the gymnast was showboating for the cameras when she lost her balance and fell
Recent Examples on the Web
Lauren Smiley, WIRED, 10 July 2024
Latimer attacked Bowman as a showboat who cared more about building a national profile on the far left than his district.
—Colby Itkowitz, Washington Post, 26 June 2024
Vulture Editors, Vulture, 31 July 2024
One thing that took away from Santos' performance was his willingness to showboat instead of looking for a finish.
—Trent Reinsmith, Forbes, 3 Sep. 2024
See all Example Sentences for showboat 
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Noun
Fonseca found Barbosa to be a showboat on Instagram, sure, but also unfailingly polite and generous.
—Lauren Smiley, WIRED, 10 July 2024
Latimer attacked Bowman as a showboat who cared more about building a national profile on the far left than his district.
—Colby Itkowitz, Washington Post, 26 June 2024
Verb
Not even the biggest skeptic of American exceptionalism could deny the talent gap, which has often been so considerable that U.S. teams often take the opportunity to showboat during games, like the Harlem Globetrotters playing against the hapless Washington Generals.
—Vulture Editors, Vulture, 31 July 2024
One thing that took away from Santos' performance was his willingness to showboat instead of looking for a finish.
—Trent Reinsmith, Forbes, 3 Sep. 2024
See all Example Sentences for showboat
Dictionary Entries Near showboat
Cite this Entry
“Showboat.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/showboat. Accessed 1 Dec. 2024.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share