self-absorbed

[self-ab-sawrbd, -zawrbd, self-]

adjective

1. preoccupied with one's own thoughts, interests, etc., especially to the extent that other people and things go unnoticed.

   She was criticized for being too self-absorbed, but she was an inventor, and when struck by an idea she had to shut the world out in order to focus on it.

self-absorbed

adjective

1. preoccupied with one's own thoughts, emotions, life, etc

Word History and Origins

Origin of self-absorbed¹

First recorded in 1840–50

Related Words

• egotistical www.thesaurus.com
• narcissistic 

When To Use

What does self-absorbed mean?

Self-absorbed is an adjective used to describe a person who’s preoccupied with their own wants and needs.When used in this term, the word absorbed means deeply preoccupied or totally wrapped up in something—in this case, oneself.Self-absorbed is almost always used negatively. When you call people self-absorbed, it usually means you think they only think about and care about themselves.The term is typically used to describe a person’s overall personality (as opposed to their behavior on a certain day or at a certain time).The state of being self-absorbed is called self-absorption (notice how the b becomes a p in the noun absorption).Example: My therapist helped me to see how self-absorbed I was, only ever thinking about myself and making everything about me.