self-love
Americannoun
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the instinct by which one's actions are directed to the promotion of one's own welfare or well-being, especially an excessive regard for one's own advantage.
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conceit; vanity.
noun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of self-love
First recorded in 1555–65
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.
The long-suffering younger Forster described his father, in an understatement, as having “a tendency toward self-love, pride, and a certain scholarly vanity.”
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 12, 2026
The diet culture of the ’90s was never totally vanquished, and Ozempic has complicated narratives about body size, health, and self-love, to put it mildly.
From Slate • Mar. 31, 2026
It has also brought mental health issues into public conversation - RM of BTS, the globally renowned K-pop group known for songs promoting self-love, is among those who have shared the book online.
From BBC • Oct. 18, 2025
And then the self-love, I’m still working on that.
From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 24, 2025
He clothed his motives in the names of virtue, and I have wondered whether he ever knew that no gift will ever buy back a man’s love when you have removed his self-love.
From "East of Eden" by John Steinbeck
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.
