Vanitous

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. demonstrating an intense focus on superficial beauty or success, conveying an emptiness in value or meaning, and revealing a noteworthy preoccupation with trivial achievements or appearances
2. exhibiting a deep concern for external appearances or success, indicating a lack of substance or genuine importance, and displaying a significant attachment to minor accolades or aesthetics
3. characterized by a strong emphasis on vain pursuits or superficial glory, suggesting a hollowness of real worth or significance, and highlighting a considerable fixation on unimportant triumphs or looks

Etymology: Latin "vanus" meant empty, hollow, or lacking substance, and that sense runs straight through the family of words built on it. English "vain" and "vanity" come from the same source, and the emptiness at the root has never fully left them. A thing that is vain in the older sense is simply hollow, while a vain person is one whose attention is fixed on the surface. "Vanitous" adds the suffix "-ous," which means "full of" or "characterised by," to "vanity." The result describes something saturated with vanity, whether a person, a manner, or an age. The noun "vanity" itself passed into English from Old French, which took it from Latin "vanitas," meaning emptiness or falsehood. The adjective is rare and mostly found in older or literary writing, so its meaning depends on the surrounding vanity rather than on a fixed everyday sense.