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megalomania

[ meg-uh-loh-mey-nee-uh ]
/ ˌmɛg ə loʊˈmeɪ ni ə /
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noun
Psychiatry. a symptom of mental illness marked by delusions of greatness, wealth, etc.
an obsession with doing extravagant or grand things.
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Origin of megalomania

First recorded in 1885–90; megalo- + -mania
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use megalomania in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for megalomania

megalomania
/ (ˌmɛɡələʊˈmeɪnɪə) /

noun
a mental illness characterized by delusions of grandeur, power, wealth, etc
informal a lust or craving for power

Derived forms of megalomania

megalomaniac, adjective, nounmegalomaniacal (ˌmɛɡələʊməˈnaɪəkəl), adjective
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 megalomania

megalomania
[ (meg-uh-loh-may-nee-uh) ]

Delusions of grandeur; an extreme form of egotism. Adolf Hitler is generally considered to have been a megalomaniac.

The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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