psychological
Americanadjective
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of or relating to psychology.
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pertaining to the mind or to mental phenomena as the subject matter of psychology.
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of, pertaining to, dealing with, or affecting the mind, especially as a function of awareness, feeling, or motivation.
psychological play;
psychological effect.
adjective
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of or relating to psychology
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of or relating to the mind or mental activity
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having no real or objective basis; arising in the mind
his backaches are all psychological
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affecting the mind
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of psychological
First recorded in 1785–95; psycholog(y) + -ical
Compare meaning
How does psychological compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
Explanation
Psychological means mental or emotional rather than physical. After a shock, your problems, and even your physical pain, stem from psychological sources rather than any bodily ailment. The word psychological is used to describe things that are primarily mental or emotional, but it can also be used when referring to the field of psychology. You might be interested in studying the psychological issues of teen and childhood in college. Watch out if someone uses psychological warfare on you. He or she uses your own emotions to attack you as when someone tries to guilt you into doing something.
Vocabulary lists containing psychological
Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka (1954)
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myPerspectives 8.1
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Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close
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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.
This isn't just limited to old-fashioned detective novels or psychological thrillers, but can be anything from true crime and spy stories to supernatural horrors like the works of Stephen King's books.
From BBC ● Jul. 31, 2026
She argued it "lacks psychological, emotional, political and ethical depth".
From Barron's ● Jul. 30, 2026
It wallows in angst and stress but has no psychological depth, sticking to bromides like “You’re special” and “Be yourself.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 30, 2026
Outside that genre, he enjoys a reputation for being an acutely psychological chronicler of contemporary anxieties, as in his award-winning 2008 drama of job loss and family secrets, “Tokyo Sonata.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 30, 2026
They did produce a big psychological effect on those occasions when they managed to fire.
From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond
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.
