I am wondering what expressions are used for this because I need to describe a person for a school essay and this is their personality.
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1A "false-front" is a general way to describe someone whose exterior character differs from their interior character. "His confidence was a false-front," means he is not really confident.– Zan700Feb 27, 2022 at 1:55
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1One U.S. idiom of possible interest is "paper tiger"—referring to someone who acts in an aggressive and perhaps intimidating way, but is far less fierce than he (or she) pretends to be, when push comes to shove. This is not specifically about confidence (or lack of it), but it has considrable overlap with it.– Sven YargsFeb 27, 2022 at 10:55
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1 Answer
Fake self-confidence is often described as false bravado. A person can be full of false bravado in a particular moment, or they can be that way habitually.
If you want an actual idiom, there's already a related question about people who boast too much with a good list in the answers. That's more about people who are all talk and no substance, which is not necessarily the same as projecting false confidence, but one of those expressions might still work for your description.
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1There's also 'putting on a brave face' at What is a word for when someone tries to hide their fear? and Word or phrase for talking tough when afraid? I'd prefer 'What idiom describes someone who appears confident on the outside but is not confident on the inside?' here. Feb 27, 2022 at 14:34