mythomania

[ mith-uh-mey-nee-uh ]

noun

, Psychiatry.

1. lying or exaggerating to an abnormal degree.

mythomania

/ ˌmɪθəʊˈmeɪnɪˌæk; ˌmɪθəʊˈmeɪnɪə /

noun

1. psychiatry the tendency to lie, exaggerate, or relate incredible imaginary adventures as if they had really happened, occurring in some mental disorders

Derived Forms

• mythomaniac, nounadjective

Other Words From

• myth·o·ma·ni·ac [mith-, uh, -, mey, -nee-ak], noun adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of mythomania¹

First recorded in 1905–10; mytho- + -mania

Example Sentences

“Who has the courage to unmask a liar who everyone wants to believe?” asks the ad for Mythomania, a new opera based on the saga surrounding disgraced surgeon Paolo Macchiarini.

From Science Magazine

“Mythomania — or plain old lying — infiltrated churches, schools, hair salons, corporate boardrooms, courtrooms, and nightclubs.”

From Los Angeles Times

You use the word “mythomania” several times in the book.

From Los Angeles Times

All of these accounts stand as necessary supplements to Dahl’s lyrical but selectively truthful autobiographical writing; Dennison notes his tendency toward “mythomania.”

From New York Times

During the war, he likely worked as a censor behind the front lines, but his record would become subject to his many fabrications and obfuscations — what David Bronsen, who published a German-language biography of Roth in 1974, termed his “mythomania.”

From New York Times