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.

Raised by two self-focused and unloving parents, scarred by their divorce and her father’s abandonment, Hepburn vowed that she would never allow any children of hers to feel as unwanted as she did.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 8, 2026

In the process, vast numbers of people can pay the price for individuals’ self-focused concept of conscience.

From Salon • Nov. 4, 2024

Researchers suggest that this type of selective self-focused attention and mirror gazing can lead to negative fixations on specific attributes or minor flaws, which in turn intensify the preoccupation with these attributes.

From Scientific American • Oct. 9, 2023

By nature, children are self-focused, so they like stories that relate back to them; like when a grandparent discusses their first day of school when a child is starting kindergarten.

From Washington Post • Apr. 12, 2022

Each new generation, christened by marketers and codified by workplace consultants selling tips on how to manage the mysterious youth, can strike the people who came just before them as uniquely self-focused.

From New York Times • Oct. 28, 2021