sociopath

[ soh-see-uh-path, soh-shee- ]

noun

, Psychiatry.

1. a person with a psychopathic personality whose behavior is antisocial, often criminal, and who lacks a sense of moral responsibility or social conscience.

sociopath

/ ˌsəʊsɪˈɒpəθɪ; ˈsəʊsɪəˌpæθ /

noun

1. psychiatry another name for psychopath

sociopath

1. Someone whose social behavior is extremely abnormal. Sociopaths are interested only in their personal needs and desires, without concern for the effects of their behavior on others. ( Compare psychopath .)

Derived Forms

• sociopathy, noun
• ˌsocioˈpathic, adjective

Other Words From

• soci·o·pathic adjective
• so·ci·op·a·thy [soh-see-, op, -, uh, -thee, soh-shee-], noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of sociopath¹

First recorded in 1940–45; socio- + -path

Example Sentences

UK Labour Labour Foreign Secretary David Lammy previously called Trump a "neo-Nazi-sympathising sociopath", in 2018 when he was a backbench MP, but has dismissed those comments as "old news", insisting he would be able to find "common ground" with the president-elect.

From BBC

When he was a backbench MP in 2018, David Lammy described Trump as a "tyrant" and "a woman-hating, neo-Nazi-sympathising sociopath".

From BBC

Whilst in opposition, Lammy had been very critical of Trump labelling him a "neo-Nazi sympathising sociopath".

From BBC

Since those calls, I have come to realize that those women simply did not understand that they had been dating a sociopath.

From Slate

They can recognize that they are being lied to, even being manipulated, but still they believe that somewhere inside the sociopath there is a human being like they are, perhaps a hurting soul gone astray.

From Slate

Related Words

• lunatic