delude

[ dih-lood ]

verb (used with object)

, de·lud·ed, de·lud·ing.

1. to mislead the mind or judgment of; deceive:

   His conceit deluded him into believing he was important.

   Synonyms: gull, defraud, cheat, dupe, cozen, beguile

2. Obsolete. to mock or frustrate the hopes or aims of.
3. Obsolete. to elude; evade.

delude

/ dɪˈluːd /

verb

1. to deceive the mind or judgment of; mislead; beguile
2. rare.
   to frustrate (hopes, expectations, etc)

Derived Forms

• deˈludingly, adverb
• deˈluder, noun
• deˈludable, adjective

Other Words From

• de·lud·er noun
• de·lud·ing·ly adverb
• non·de·lud·ing adjective
• un·de·lud·ing adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of delude¹

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English deluden, from Latin dēlūdere “to play false,” equivalent to dē- de- + lūdere “to play”

Word History and Origins

Origin of delude¹

C15: from Latin dēlūdere to mock, play false, from de- + lūdere to play

Example Sentences

They were just a useful punching bag for fascist leaders, who needed a hate object to dangle in front of their deluded supporters.

From Salon

What's sad is that Trump and his allies don't even hide how much they think his voters are ignorant and deluded.

From Salon

Maybe I’m just hardwired to say this as a Gen X-er, but it’s been exasperating to see that optimism harden among some boomers into a kind of deluded self-regard.

From Los Angeles Times

There are still a shocking number of deluded and misguided folks out there who believe Trump won in 2020.

From Los Angeles Times

Let's not delude ourselves, we're looking at human extinction, the death of eight billion people, and there's no way that people will be able to survive in anything like an increase of 5º centigrade.

From Salon

Related Words

• dupe
• hoodwink
• misguide
• mislead