Full of oneself is an idiom that dates back hundreds of years. We will examine the meaning of the common saying full of oneself, where it came from, and some examples of its idiomatic usage in sentences.
To be full of oneself means to be conceited, to be smug or self-satisfied, to be vain. Full of oneself may also be used to mean that someone has too high of an opinion of his own opinion; he is a blowhard. The expression full of oneself dates to the 1600s, though at that time, the term could either mean to be conceited or to be centered or grounded. Interestingly, the popularity of the term full of oneself skyrocketed in the twentieth century.
Examples
But Frog was very full of himself with his new long tail and his powerful position as keeper of the only watering hole. (Minneapolis Star Tribune)
The authority with which he can manage a choir is impressive, yet he doesn’t seem overly confident or full of himself in the least. (Fort Dodge Messenger)
“Don’t be so full of yourself to think you know it all.” (Ortonville Citizen)
Want to know more idioms? Check out some others we covered: