delude
Americanverb (used with object)
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deludes,
present (3rd person singular)
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deluded,
past participle, past
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deluding
present participle
verb
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to deceive the mind or judgment of; mislead; beguile
-
rare to frustrate (hopes, expectations, etc)
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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deludesimple
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deludessimple
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have deludedperfect
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has deludedperfect
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am deludingprogressive
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are deludingprogressive
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is deludingprogressive
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have been deludingperfect progressive
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has been deludingperfect progressive
Past
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deludedsimple
-
had deludedperfect
-
was deludingprogressive
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were deludingprogressive
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had been deludingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of delude
First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English deluden, from Latin dēlūdere “to play false,” equivalent to dē- de- + lūdere “to play”
Explanation
To delude is to trick or fool, often in relation to yourself. If you delude yourself into thinking your mom's chocolate cake is low in fat, you'll be disappointed to find out it's made with two sticks of butter! If you delude someone into thinking something, you are making a fool of them, or making them foolish. The word shares a root with ludicrous which means completely ridiculous. The thing that you foolishly believe is a delusion. Someone with delusions of grandeur has deluded themselves into thinking they are very, very special.
Vocabulary lists containing delude
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Othello
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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.
See Examples For:
"People delude themselves that the human race is so clever that we'll come up with some wonderful technology that'll make this all go away."
From Barron's ● Aug. 3, 2026
Some people delude themselves into thinking they’re financially independent when they’re not.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 12, 2026
“We delude ourselves, too, if we think that power will accumulate safely and only in the hands of dispassionate ‘people . . . found in agencies.’”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 22, 2026
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 ● Oct. 24, 2024
John Faa said, “Lyra, there en’t no question of taking you into danger, so don’t delude yourself, child. Stay here and help Ma Costa and keep safe. That’s what you got to do.”
From "The Golden Compass" by Philip Pullman
She concocts a fantasy, one that Arthur deludes himself into believing.
From Salon ● Oct. 12, 2024
It deludes us into thinking that someone else is going to rush in while we watch and cheer from the stands.
From Slate ● Mar. 4, 2024
After Strane is accused by a more recent student on social media, Vanessa is cornered: She faces or almost faces the ways she has been deluding herself, and then she deludes herself again.
From New York Times ● Mar. 6, 2020
Perhaps May also deludes herself that the present moment is especially propitious for a renewal of “our special relationship”.
From The Guardian ● Feb. 14, 2017
As for Mrs. Hamilton, she smiled her sweet, malicious smile, and her melting eyes were soft with that false mercy which deludes apace and welcomes to destruction.
From Cardigan by Robert W. (Robert William) Chambers
Pauling may never be fully vindicated, but neither was he simply deluded.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 7, 2026
If that’s the case, he is more deluded than he seems to think the rest of us are.
From Slate ● Apr. 30, 2026
But he is also so paranoid, deluded and consumed with self-loathing that throughout this caustically witty novel we can’t help but root for him every step of the way.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 2, 2026
The trip sent him into what he describes as a "deluded" state.
From BBC ● Jan. 1, 2026
Or perhaps time, as it will, lent the occasion a gravity that it did not possess, and everything was as Lander insisted: They were deluded.
From "The Underground Railroad: A Novel" by Colson Whitehead
If he really believes that the job of making peace is done, then he is deluding himself.
From BBC ● Oct. 14, 2025
There could be “huge social ruptures where one side sees the other as very cruelly exploiting AI while the other side sees the first as deluding itself into thinking there’s sentience there,” he said.
From Salon ● Jun. 10, 2025
“But I think really they will be deluding themselves if they think that that bodes well for the next general election.”
From Washington Times ● Jul. 21, 2023
Carrigan: The dinner scene between Hank and the Raven, when the Raven is just baffled that Hank is deluding himself into not being responsible for Cristobal’s death.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 24, 2023
“Don’t be a fool, human. You’re deluding yourself. Mud technology is eons behind ours. There is no way to escape the time-field.”
From "Artemis Fowl" by Eoin Colfer
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
