oedipal

American  

[ed-uh-puhl, ee-duh-] / ˈɛd ə pəl, ˈi də- /

adjective

(often initial capital letter)

1. of, characterized by, or resulting from the Oedipus complex.

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Etymology

Origin of oedipal

First recorded in 1935–40; Oedip(us complex) + -al ¹

Example Sentences

Scholars have long dismissed the hack analysis that George W. Bush was driven by Oedipal issues or Halliburton.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 6, 2026

Rather than slotting in as a “horror” film, it can be categorized a little less neatly as a surreal three-hour Homeric odyssey about Jewish guilt, Oedipal angst and somebody named “Birthday Boy Stab Man.”

From Seattle Times • Apr. 21, 2023

The first word we see written down in “Beau Is Afraid,” Ari Aster’s raging Oedipal phantasmagoria of a movie, is “Guilt,” with a capital “G.”

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 14, 2023

Part of what will make the fast-approaching Oedipal primary season so damned entertaining is the relative humorlessness of people like Mr. DeSantis and Mrs. Haley.

From Washington Times • Feb. 20, 2023

A classic Oedipal triangle — mother, son, and mother’s new boyfriend — forms the simmering heart of Rodrigo Ruiz Patterson’s taut Mexico City–set feature.

From New York Times • Jan. 13, 2023