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self-directed

British  

adjective

  1. (of study, learning, etc) regulated or conducted by oneself

"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

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.

See Examples For:

And when they turned to humour, it was almost always self-directed: joking about the kilometres logged fleeing baton charges or the absurdity of filming an outfit reveal moments before running into tear gas.

From BBC Jul. 22, 2026

The proposal will help Americans diversify their retirement investments from the “cookie-cutter” norm out there now, said Adam Bergman, founder of IRA Financial, a provider of self-directed IRAs.

From MarketWatch Jun. 1, 2026

The retail focus makes sense given Musk’s unique pull among a certain set of self-directed traders, according to Marquez, who expects retail demand to be strong.

From Barron's May 22, 2026

They were divided into three groups for the yearlong intervention: baduanjin practice, self-directed exercise, or brisk walking.

From Science Daily May 10, 2026

Learning in our family was entirely self-directed: you could learn anything you could teach yourself, after your work was done.

From "Educated" by Tara Westover

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