inferiority complex

[ in-feer-ee-awr-i-tee kom-pleks, -or- ]

noun

, Psychology.

1. an intense feeling of inferiority or inadequacy; low self-esteem, sometimes characterized by compensatory behaviors intended to bolster self-confidence. Compare superiority complex ( def ).

inferiority complex

noun

1. psychiatry a disorder arising from the conflict between the desire to be noticed and the fear of being humiliated, characterized by aggressiveness or withdrawal into oneself

Word History and Origins

Origin of inferiority complex¹

First recorded in 1920–25

Example Sentences

Gisèle and her lawyers also discussed whether Dominique might have been suffering from an inferiority complex due to an affair she had with a coworker, a perceived difference in social status between them or the fact that she had a loving childhood and he didn't.

From BBC

He’s a walking inferiority complex, compensating with random acts of violence, like a Caligula fanboy, and looks ready at any minute to pop off like Vesuvius.

From Los Angeles Times

“Becoming Karl,” which depicts the rivalry between Mr. Lagerfeld and his peer, Yves Saint Laurent, focuses on Mr. Lagerfeld’s apparently enormous inferiority complex and the two men’s rivalry for the love of Jacques de Bascher.

From New York Times

“When the villain has motivation, a mission, an ego, when there’s a humanity inside there, even though Maestro is objectively pretty evil, they believe in what they’re doing. There’s a layer of, I daresay, an inferiority complex derived from daddy issues.”

From Seattle Times

“There’s so many people that have an inferiority complex about, ‘We’re the University of Houston.’

From Seattle Times