Synonyms

delude

American

[dih-lood] / dɪˈlud /

verb (used with object)

deluded, deluding

to mislead the mind or judgment of; deceive.

His conceit deluded him into believing he was important.

Synonyms:

gull, defraud, cheat, dupe, cozen, beguile
Obsolete. to mock or frustrate the hopes or aims of.
Obsolete. to elude; evade.

delude British

/ dɪˈluːd /

verb

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

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

deludable adjective
deluder noun
deludingly adverb
nondeluding adjective
undeluding adjective

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”

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.

“We can delude ourselves for a while that this is not a real cost, but we’re only fooling ourselves at the end of the day,” he says.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 23, 2026

Blanche is just the latest person to delude himself this way.

From Salon • May 2, 2024

“They delude themselves with groupthink so that they can pretend this isn’t about hate but about protection, but we know the truth.”

From Seattle Times • Apr. 7, 2023

I’m not a practiced enough viewer to delude myself into thinking I have any chance.

From New York Times • Mar. 13, 2023

Because I wasn’t foolish enough to delude myself for this long—I was absolutely, totally, and completely falling for Sahil Roy.

From "From Twinkle, with Love" by Sandhya Menon

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