Meaning of ugly American | Babel Free

Definitions

An American government representative, tourist, or businessperson who, in dealing with people of other nations, is haughty, rude, meddlesome, chauvinistic, or jingoistic.

idiomatic

Examples

“The Republican House managers were acting like ugly Americans abroad who think that if they talk loudly and slowly, foreigners will understand them.”

“Quinn throws himself into the role of the vain, heavy-drinking bully with gusto[…]. He's precisely the kind of ugly American people cringe upon meeting—loud, demanding and arrogant, a bottle of Scotch never far from his elbow.”

“The US […]turned into an overweening global bully […]. In the persons of Bush, Dick Cheney and Donald Rumsfeld, the Ugly American was back.”

“For the last fortnight, Trump has presented himself to the world as the caricature of the ugly American: loud, boorish and ill-informed.”

““We try so hard not to be the ugly American, and here is Emily with her terrible accent and garish clothing, shouting at French people in English and expecting them to understand,” she said.”

CEFR level