preening

[ pree-ning ]

noun

1. the act of trimming or dressing the feathers, fur, etc., with the beak or tongue:

   Examples of animals engaging in the same behavior at the same time include the gobbling of turkeys and the preening of birds.

2. the act of dressing oneself carefully or smartly, or making small adjustments to one’s clothing to appear trim and smart; primping:

   I remember my grandma using that perfume—the scent, and the preening in front of the mirror that went with it.

3. the act of priding oneself on an achievement, personal quality, etc., especially in an obnoxious way:

   All the posing and preening by these politicians is not going to help if the program ends up making food less affordable.

adjective

1. (of birds or animals) trimming or dressing the feathers, fur, etc., with the beak or tongue:

   We got fabulous views of a preening pair of trumpeter swans on a large rock in the river.

2. dressing oneself carefully or smartly; primping:

   He is a preening ladies' man and social climber.

3. priding oneself on an achievement, personal quality, etc., especially in an obnoxious way:

   Once again you show yourself to be nothing but a preening pseudointellectual.

Word History and Origins

Origin of preening¹

First recorded in 1590–1600; preen ¹( def ) + -ing ¹( def ) for the noun senses; preen ¹( def ) + -ing ²( def ) for the adjective senses

Example Sentences

“Pelosi,” by Molly BallIn Ball’s account, Nancy Pelosi is as tough as bullets and knows how to count votes, negotiate and herd her tribe — lost skills in American politics, atrophied in the modern-day rush to preen and tweet.

From Washington Post

The book, surprisingly, is not the self-aggrandizing vanity trip of a preening pop star one would expect.

From The Daily Beast

Preening, arrogant, vindictive, and inexorable; awash with cash; corrupt; in bed with corporate America and big finance.

From The Daily Beast

Norm is a symbol of implacable corporate power—preening, surgically perfected, casually domineering.

From The Daily Beast

Astonishingly, no one falls prey to the posturing or preening that haunts most Western conferences.

From The Daily Beast

I looked up to see where my bird of paradise had landed—presumably in a soft cloud in the rafters, preening her feathers.

From The Daily Beast

Jessie had dressed Henrietta, and the child was preening herself in the sun like a peacock.

From Project Gutenberg

The doves were cooing and fluttering in the cornices and the cockatoo was preening his lemon colored topknot.

From Project Gutenberg

He stopped short, drawing himself up and preening in the way that was half infuriating and half pathetic.

From Project Gutenberg

Annie was careless, and she was dainty, and she was conscious of a little pleasurable preening of her own soul-plumage.

From Project Gutenberg

Persis herself was like a pouter pigeon strutting and preening her high breast.

From Project Gutenberg