deluded

American

[dih-loo-did] / dɪˈlu dɪd /

adjective

entertaining a false belief or opinion; mistaken or deceived in mind or judgment.

While some deluded commentators welcomed this as "fantastic news," the rest of us were seriously upset.

verb

the simple past tense and past participle of delude.

Other Word Forms

nondeluded adjective
undeluded adjective
undeludedly adverb

Etymology

Origin of deluded

delude ( def. ) + -ed ² ( def. )

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Anderson’s film is nowhere near as bad, but it’s as deluded about reality and self-important about its perspective as “Crash” was.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 17, 2026

“Are they bigots? Are they deluded in thinking that they are subjected to unfair competition?”

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 13, 2026

The trip sent him into what he describes as a "deluded" state.

From BBC • Jan. 1, 2026

Musk and Navarro, deluded as they may be, are self-anointed geniuses in specific areas of commerce, economics and technology.

From Salon • Apr. 13, 2025

He’d continued down to the beach still unaffected, the bad news acting with a kind of discretion, allowing him these last few peaceful, deluded moments.

From "Middlesex: A Novel" by Jeffrey Eugenides

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023