deluded

American

[dih-loo-did] / dɪˈlu dɪd /

adjective

entertaining a false belief or opinion; mistaken or deceived in mind or judgment.

While some deluded commentators welcomed this as "fantastic news," the rest of us were seriously upset.

verb

the simple past tense and past participle of delude.

Other Word Forms

Etymology

Origin of deluded

delude ( def. ) + -ed ² ( def. )

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.

If that’s the case, he is more deluded than he seems to think the rest of us are.

From Slate • Apr. 30, 2026

“Are they bigots? Are they deluded in thinking that they are subjected to unfair competition?”

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 13, 2026

"They weren't there; they weren't involved in the investigation. Some of these people are deluded," he says.

From BBC • Dec. 6, 2025

Musk and Navarro, deluded as they may be, are self-anointed geniuses in specific areas of commerce, economics and technology.

From Salon • Apr. 13, 2025

I waited for him to take it up, to unravel once again his tale of plotting statesmen and deluded public, his great joke, his private toe hold on the world.

From "A Separate Peace" by John Knowles

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