strut

¹

[struht]

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.

strut

²

[struht]

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

/ 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

Other Word Forms

• strutting adjective
• strutter noun
• struttingly adverb

Word History and Origins

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

Word History and Origins

Origin of strut¹

C14 strouten (in the sense: swell, stand out; C16: to walk stiffly), from Old English strūtian to stand stiffly; related to Low German strutt stiff

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

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

Synonym Study

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.

Example Sentences

He also played down feminine curves, telling buxom models to wear a breast wrap for his fashion shows, and all models to resist the hip-swinging runway strut.

From Los Angeles Times

In a video shared by TMZ, the “Old Town Road” rapper tells a nearby driver, “Don’t be late to the party tonight,” before singing as he struts down the middle of Ventura Boulevard.

From Salon

Mach’s Shakespeare has the cocky strut of a rapper-producer with a long list of colossal hits.

From Los Angeles Times

Today it’s a strutting sense of self and mission the Roman of a later era would have recognized just as readily.

From Salon

So, yeah, don’t expect to see Hurts strutting around camp wearing his shiny new Super Bowl ring.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• prance 
• sashay 
• stalk 
• stride 
• swagger