Dominic Grieve, whom Mr Cameron hurriedly (perhaps too hurriedly) appointed in Mr Davis's stead, is a sometimes supercilious-seeming barrister.

ECONOMIST: Bagehot

Writers vied to see who could heap the most scorn on the allegedly boring conformity of that receding decade, drawing supercilious caricatures of middle-class men and women of the era as superficial, plastic figures.

FORBES: A Nostalgic New Year's Look At The 1950s

Three middle-age blowhards (a supercilious retired soldier, a dull canon and the puffed-up owner of a river bathhouse) vie for the affections of a comely magician's assistant, who seems open to dalliances despite a relationship with her milquetoast employer (wonderfully underplayed by Mr. Menzel).

WSJ: Pearls of the Czech New Wave | Before the Spring Was Gone | By David Mermelstein