()せびらかす

みせびらかす
verb (godan, transitive)
to show off; to flaunt; to display proudly
他動詞 transitiveaction
Conjugation
AffirmativeNegative
Present()せびらかす()せびらかさない
Present polite()せびらかします()せびらかしません
Past()せびらかした()せびらかさなかった
Past polite()せびらかしました()せびらかしませんでした
て form()せびらかして()せびらかさなくて
ている present()せびらかしている()せびらかしていない
ている polite()せびらかしています()せびらかしていません
ている past()せびらかしていた()せびらかしていなかった
ている past polite()せびらかしていました()せびらかしていませんでした
Conditional ば()せびらかせば()せびらかさなければ
Conditional たら()せびらかしたら()せびらかさなかったら
Volitional()せびらかそう
Volitional polite()せびらかしましょう
Potential()せびらかせる()せびらかせない
Passive()せびらかされる()せびらかされない
Causative()せびらかさせる()せびらかさせない
Imperative()せびらかせ()せびらかすな
1. to show off; to flaunt
To display something conspicuously to impress others, often with a sense of boasting.
(あたら)しい(くるま)()せびらかしている
He's showing off his new car.
It's tacky to show off luxury brands on social media.
Flaunting your knowledge makes people dislike you.
The child was showing off the new toy to friends.
He was showing off his overseas travel photos to everyone and bragging.

Forms

Built on ()せる (to show) plus the bound element びらかす, which contributes the idea of spreading something out for others to look at. びらかす does not occur as a word on its own.

Register

Always unflattering. The speaker is criticising the display rather than admiring what is displayed — the word carries vanity, boastfulness, and indifference to how the audience feels. Speakers use it of their own behaviour only self-deprecatingly.

Common collocations

Similar words

  • 自慢(じまん)する is boasting in words; ()せびらかす is boasting by putting the thing itself in front of people.
  • (ほこ) is neutral to positive — to be proud of something that genuinely merits pride.
  • 見栄(みえ) is the vanity that motivates the behaviour, the noun a speaker reaches for when explaining why someone shows off.