bombast
noun /ˈbɒmbæst/
/ˈbɑːmbæst/
[uncountable] (formal)- words which sound important but have little meaning, used to impress people
- His speech was full of bombast.
Word Originmid 16th cent. (denoting raw cotton or cotton wool used as padding, later used figuratively): from Old French bombace, from medieval Latin bombax, bombac-, alteration of bombyx , based on Greek bombux ‘silkworm’.