self-centered
Americanadjective
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concerned solely or chiefly with one's own interests, welfare, etc.; engrossed in self; selfish; egotistical.
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independent, self-sufficient.
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centered in oneself or itself.
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Archaic. fixed; unchanging.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of self-centered
First recorded in 1670–80
Explanation
A self-centered person is excessively concerned with himself and his own needs. He's selfish. You probably know some people who always talk about themselves, make every issue about themselves, and are generally all about "Me, me, me!" People like that are self-centered: as the word suggests, they are overly centered on themselves. Self-centered people tend to ignore the needs of others and only do what's best for them. You can also call them egocentric, egoistic, and egoistical. In the seventeenth century, however, self-centered meant "fixed or stationary."
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.
Q. Self-Centered Niece Drives Me Nuts: My sister and her husband had their daughter Abby after struggling with infertility for years.
From Slate • Aug. 13, 2012
So thanks, anyway, for all that attention to The Odyssey of the Self-Centered Self.
From Time Magazine Archive
Deeply worried about an economy that is fraught with future uncertainties, overwhelmingly concerned with preparing for lucrative and satisfying jobs, today's college students can be fairly characterized as the Self-Centered Generation.
From Time Magazine Archive
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.
