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
-
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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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
Blanche is just the latest person to delude himself this way.
From Salon ● May 2, 2024
People delude themselves in all sorts of ways.
From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton
She concocts a fantasy, one that Arthur deludes himself into believing.
From Salon ● Oct. 12, 2024
But maybe it’s impossible to separate the reckless carnival barker who deludes himself and others from the bold ideas that really are helping to change the world for the better.
From New York Times ● Aug. 3, 2021
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
I’m trying to embrace the fact that everyone deludes themselves about some things.
From Slate ● Apr. 27, 2016
Just such a course of reasoning deludes all who forget that the goodness of God leadeth to repentance.
From The Expositor's Bible: The Book of Exodus by G. A. Chadwick
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
His direct, pragmatic approach has seduced voters, but has it deluded him into thinking that he has all the answers?
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 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
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
My blood - painfully milked out of my index finger - will determine whether I have been deluding myself too.
From BBC ● Nov. 12, 2022
If she is not, I have been sadly deluding myself.
From "Nine Stories" by J. D. Salinger
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.
