vainglory

From Middle English waynglori (“worthless glory”), from Old French vaine glorie, from Medieval Latin vāna glōria, from Latin vāna (“empty, groundless, boastful”) + glōria (“fame, ambition, boasting”), apparently modelled after similar terms in Germanic languages. Compare Old English īdel wuldor (“vain glory”) and īdelġielp (“vainglory”).

• Hyphenation: vain‧glo‧ry

vainglory (countable and uncountable, plural vainglories)

1. Excessive vanity.
2. Boastful, unwarranted pride in one's accomplishments or qualities.
3. Vain, ostentatious display.
   • 1863, Sheridan Le Fanu, The House by the Churchyard

     The pew would soon want new flooring, Mr. Dangerfield thought, and the Castlemallard arms and supporters, a rather dingy piece of vainglory, overhanging the main seat on the wall, would be nothing the worse of a little fresh gilding and paint.

4. A regarding of oneself with undue favor.

• vainglorious

vainglory (third-person singular simple present vainglories, present participle vainglorying, simple past and past participle vaingloried)

1. (intransitive) To boast; to act in a vain manner.