MEANING
Holding firmly to a false belief despite contrary evidence.
Use it for
A belief persisting against evidence; disputed reality in narration; mistaken attribution of hidden agencyGround the false belief and resistance to evidence rather than using the word as an insult.
Words that belong together
- delusional belief
- delusional conviction
- delusional interpretation
On the page
The clinician distinguished a delusional belief from an ordinary misunderstanding.
His delusional conviction survived repeated demonstrations that the transmitter was empty.
She objected to being called delusional before anyone examined the locked room.
Nearby words
Related words
Word forms
- Base
- delusional
Usage notes
Primary category: horror. A clinical description, not a synonym for unusual, frightened, or mistaken. A delusion concerns belief; a hallucination concerns perception. Adjective; comparison: more delusional, most delusional. Derived/related family (not inflections): delusion (noun).
Practice this word in a sentenceYour margin notes
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