What is the word for false modesty?

Question

In more detail, i want an adjective to describe a person who seems to be very modest and unpretentious but he has a very subtle way to gain praise out of people, in other words false modesty

one misconception most of u are getting.... the person actually possesses the qualities.. its just that he covers up the "showing off" with modesty.. thanks for the suggestions.. found a very close word: ingratiating

Answer 1

Could not find a word that means that exactly but priggishness comes close. A prig is a person who demonstrates an exaggerated conformity or propriety, especially in an irritatingly arrogant or smug manner.

Tartuffery is the next best I could find. A tartuffe is a hypocrite, especially one who affects religious piety.

Answer 2

manipulative - as in a person who is intelligent, but claims they aren't in order to manipulate others into insisting that they are.

Ingratiating means having a calculatingly pleasing attitude, to get in someone's good favor.

I couldn't think of an antonym for "false modesty," but a person who uses it is trying to manipulate the other person into praising them, which is why I mentioned manipulative.

Answer 3

Anything I come up with (vainglorious, pompous, sycophantic) doesn't really hit the mark

Answer 4

obsequeious?
or how about 'pseudomodest' (not a real word, I suspect, but it seems to me you should be able to add the prefix 'pseudo' to pretty much any word you like!)

Answer 5

insincere