strut

¹ American  

[struht] / strʌt /

verb (used without object)

strutted, strutting

1. to walk with a vain, pompous bearing, as with head erect and chest thrown out, as if expecting to impress observers.

   Synonyms:

   flourish, parade

---

noun

1. the act of strutting.

2. a strutting walk or gait.

idioms

1. strut one's stuff, to dress, behave, perform, etc., one's best in order to impress others; show off.

strut ² American  

[struht] / strʌt /

noun

1. any of various structural members, as in trusses, primarily intended to resist longitudinal compression.

---

verb (used with object)

strutted, strutting

1. to brace or support by means of a strut or struts.

strut British  

/ strʌt /

verb

1. (intr) to walk in a pompous manner; swagger

2. (tr) to support or provide with struts

3. informal to behave or perform in a proud and confident manner; show off

---

noun

1. a structural member used mainly in compression, esp as part of a framework

2. an affected, proud, or stiff walk

Related Words

Strut and swagger refer especially to carriage in walking. Strut implies swelling pride or pompousness; to strut is to walk with a stiff, pompous, seemingly affected or self-conscious gait: A turkey struts about the barnyard. Swagger implies a domineering, sometimes jaunty, superiority or challenge, and a self-important manner: to swagger down the street.

Other Word Forms

• strutter noun
• strutting adjective
• struttingly adverb

Etymology

Origin of strut¹

First recorded before 1000; Middle English strouten “to protrude stiffly, swell, bluster,” Old English strūtian “to struggle,” derivative of unattested strūt (whence Middle English strut “strife”)

Origin of strut²

First recorded in 1565–75; obscurely akin to strut ¹

Example Sentences

Around 25 outfits will strut the catwalk on Sunday, a moment that "goes by in a flash".

From Barron's • Feb. 18, 2026

Mummers are split into five different divisions, with each performance playing a special role as they strut along Broad Street for 10 hours.

From BBC • Jan. 17, 2026

We are up and operating again, getting our strut back.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 30, 2025

Cohen kicked off the $25 session with what he calls a “communal pump,” a classwide strut across the floor.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 23, 2025

“You think Joe is going to college? Like he’s going to Harvard College and strut around like he’s all smart and everything? Smarter than his dad? You think that’s what’s going to happen?”

From "Orbiting Jupiter" by Gary D. Schmidt

Related Words

• prance
• sashay
• stalk
• stride
• swagger