fustian

fus·tian  (fschn)

n.

1.

a. A coarse sturdy cloth made of cotton and flax.

b. Any of several thick twilled cotton fabrics, such as corduroy, having a short nap.

2. Pretentious speech or writing; pompous language.

adj.

1. Made of or as if of fustian: "[He] disliked the heavy, fustian ... and brocaded decor of Soviet officialdom" (Frederick Forsyth).

2. Pompous, bombastic, and ranting: "Yossarian was unmoved by the fustian charade of the burial ceremony" (Joseph Heller).

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[Middle English, from Old French fustaigne, from Medieval Latin fstnum, fstinum, possibly from Latin fstis, wooden stick, club (translation of Greek xulinos, wood-linen, cotton) or from El Fostat (El Fustat), a section of Cairo, Egypt.]

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fustian

Noun

1. (formerly) a hard-wearing fabric of cotton mixed with flax or wool

2. pompous talk or writing [Old French fustaigne]

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fustian

a high-flown, bombastic style of writing or speaking. — fustianist, n.

See also: Rhetoric and Rhetorical Devices

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a high-flown, bombastic style of writing or speaking. — fustianist, n.

See also: Language Style

Thesaurus

Noun	1.	fustian - pompous or pretentious talk or writing blah, bombast, claptrap, rant grandiloquence, grandiosity, magniloquence, ornateness, rhetoric - high-flown style; excessive use of verbal ornamentation; "the grandiosity of his prose"; "an excessive ornateness of language"
	2.	fustian - a strong cotton and linen fabric with a slight nap cloth, fabric, textile, material - artifact made by weaving or felting or knitting or crocheting natural or synthetic fibers; "the fabric in the curtains was light and semitransparent"; "woven cloth originated in Mesopotamia around 5000 BC"; "she measured off enough material for a dress"