cavalier 1 of 2

as in arrogant
having a feeling of superiority that shows itself in an overbearing attitude a cavalier and pompous boss, indifferent to the feelings of her subordinates

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cavalier

2 of 2

noun

Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of cavalier
Adjective
In 2021, Yesha Yadav, of Vanderbilt Law School, identified structural fragilities in the market, caused by simple cavalier inattention: Why bother scrutinizing the safest thing out there? Mary Childs, Harpers Magazine, 16 July 2025 But some summer camp experiences are still overshadowed by tragedy, often due to cavalier attitudes on the part of operators, according to experts. Michael Loria, USA Today, 8 July 2025
Noun
What is unique, however, is the way TikTok and its outside consultants are handling this material—an approach experts say is ham-handed and cavalier at best, and harmful and re-traumatizing at worst. Alexandra S. Levine, Forbes, 4 Aug. 2022 Finally, to call Alito’s assessment of the ruling’s consequences for women cavalier would be charitable. Sue Halpern, The New York Review of Books, 25 May 2022 See All Example Sentences for cavalier
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cavalier
Adjective
  • Three or four decades ago, the newspaperman was appealingly raffish—at once a bum who drank too much and a knight-errant who charged unafraid at social injustice, succored the weak, and crossed lances with the powerful and arrogant.
    David Wingrave, Harpers Magazine, 24 Oct. 2025
  • Elsewhere, the details lifted from the book suffer in translation – Branagh’s Victor is appropriately arrogant but not adequately tortured; De Niro’s Monster is sensitive and intuitive, but drowns in the film’s hurried, hollow second half.
    Rory Doherty, Vulture, 20 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • Edouard Langlois, a formidable dark-bearded gentleman, was the artistic director of the local Edwin Booth Theatre.
    Robert Eggers, HollywoodReporter, 17 Oct. 2025
  • Golf has been a gentleman’s sport.
    Devlina Sarkar, MSNBC Newsweek, 17 Oct. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Cavalier.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cavalier. Accessed 29 Oct. 2025.

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