ego

[ ee-goh, eg-oh ]

/ ˈi goʊ, ˈɛg oʊ /

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See synonyms for: ego / egos on Thesaurus.com

noun, plural e·gos.

the “I” or self of any person; a person as thinking, feeling, and willing, and distinguishing itself from the selves of others and from objects of its thought.

Psychoanalysis. the part of the psychic apparatus that experiences and reacts to the outside world and thus mediates between the primitive drives of the id and the demands of the social and physical environment.

egotism; conceit; self-importance: Her ego becomes more unbearable each day.

self-esteem or self-image; feelings: Your criticism wounded his ego.

(often initial capital letter)Philosophy.

the enduring and conscious element that knows experience.
Scholasticism. the complete person comprising both body and soul.

Ethnology. a person who serves as the central reference point in the study of organizational and kinship relationships.

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Origin of ego

1780–90; <Latin: I; psychoanalytic term is translation of German (das) Ich (the) I

Words nearby ego

eglandular, eglantine, Eglevsky, EGM, Egmont, ego, ego-alien, ego analysis, ego boost, egocentric, egocentric speech

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use ego in a sentence

I think that’s what I … I have very little tolerance for people whose egos are inflated and who have lost their sense of curiosity about other people.
The BBC’s Katty Kay Shuts Down Men Who ‘Tell Me to Shut Up’|Eugene Robinson|January 23, 2021|Ozy
A remote expanse of badlands and prairie that humbles the ego instantly.
Seeing Big Vistas at Theodore Roosevelt National Park|Emily Pennington|January 21, 2021|Outside Online
That is, stable in his penchant to destroy everything and everyone that doesn’t feed his ego.
Joe Scarborough: ‘We made the same mistake that people made during Hitler’s rise’|Erik Wemple|January 14, 2021|Washington Post
In service of his own ego, he is undermining the constitution and democracy, and may well hand a defeat to Senate Republicans in the process.
Business backs democracy|Alan Murray|January 5, 2021|Fortune

The first rule is not to destroy your career, your life, just because of the ego.
Everest Summits May Become Easier Due to Climate Change|Kyla Mandel|November 20, 2020|Outside Online
“You know, I never had a monstrous ego,” Mailer confides to a friend in l987.
Mailer’s Letters Pack a Punch and a Surprising Degree of Sweetness|Ronald K. Fried|December 14, 2014|DAILY BEAST
All I had in those days was a monstrous lack of ego which therefore required huge injections of actorly ego and misled people.
Mailer’s Letters Pack a Punch and a Surprising Degree of Sweetness|Ronald K. Fried|December 14, 2014|DAILY BEAST
He even allegedly had a nickname for his violent, aggressive alter ego: Rick.
Creed Singer Scott Stapp’s Fall From Grace: From 40 Million Albums Sold to Living in a Holiday Inn|Marlow Stern|November 27, 2014|DAILY BEAST
In other words, Taylor Kitsch at his best plays against ego.
Alright ‘True Detective,’ You Got Me: Taylor Kitsch Is a Woman’s Man|Teo Bugbee|November 1, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Given his alter ego, it may not come as a surprise that Goyeneche is into antiquities, especially of the pre-Colombian variety.
Trading Dime Bags for Salvador Dali|Jason McGahan|October 19, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Increpaui ego, vt potui, per interpret paganicos hos mores in iam Christianis.
The Jesuit Relations and Allied Documents, Vol. II: Acadia, 1612-1614|Various
Ego r improbaui, veritus scilicet, ne vel Galli, vel eti Gtiles hoc interpretartur in fidei nostr iniuri.
The Jesuit Relations and Allied Documents, Vol. II: Acadia, 1612-1614|Various
From an active state of resistance the ego traversed a descending curve ending in absolute passivity.
Dope|Sax Rohmer
The final test of one's ability to project the personal ego over all else in the material world.
Hooded Detective, Volume III No. 2, January, 1942|Various
Wilson Lamb's ego died a horrible death seventeen seconds before he did.
Hooded Detective, Volume III No. 2, January, 1942|Various

British Dictionary definitions for ego

ego

/ (ˈiːɡəʊ, ˈɛɡəʊ) /

noun plural egos

the self of an individual person; the conscious subject

psychoanal the conscious mind, based on perception of the environment from birth onwards: responsible for modifying the antisocial instincts of the id and itself modified by the conscience (superego)

one's image of oneself; moraleto boost one's ego

egotism; conceit

Word Origin for ego

C19: from Latin: I

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

Cultural definitions for ego

ego

[ (ee-goh) ]

The “I” or self of any person (ego is Latin for “I”). In psychological terms, the ego is the part of the psyche that experiences the outside world and reacts to it, coming between the primitive drives of the id and the demands of the social environment, represented by the superego.

notes for ego

The term ego is often used to mean personal pride and self-absorption: “Losing at chess doesn't do much for my ego.”