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self-proclaimed

British  

adjective

  1. proclaimed or described by oneself

    the self-proclaimed leader

"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

Explanation

The adjective self-proclaimed means describing yourself in a certain way. Just because you're a self-proclaimed genius in the kitchen doesn't necessarily mean your family loves your creative recipes. Being self-proclaimed means making an assertion about who you are or what you're skilled at. Sometimes that matches other people's perceptions: you're a self-proclaimed dog expert, and everyone comes to you for advice about their problematic pups. But often it stems from a skewed view of your own abilities. You may be a self-proclaimed Icelandic speaker, but if no one in Reykjavík can understand a word you say, it might be time to re-think the way you describe yourself!

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Vocabulary lists containing self-proclaimed

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:

Instead, like any good reader—Swift is our self-proclaimed English teacher, after all—we might make more progress unpacking the text itself.

From Slate ● Sep. 23, 2026

The move comes after the government led by Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi -- a self-proclaimed workaholic -- adopted a growth strategy in July calling for revisions to the current oversight of work hours.

From Barron's ● Sep. 1, 2026

For Saturday’s installment, the self-proclaimed “carefully curated celebration” produced a somewhat underwhelming set of undercards, with LCD Soundsystem and the Strokes carrying the momentum for the entire affair.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 24, 2026

Pangram’s CEO, co-founder and self-proclaimed “slop janitor” Max Spero said the tool’s high rate of accuracy has been validated by multiple third-party studies.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 17, 2026

The French have decided to ignore our self-proclaimed superiority, and this is translated as arrogance.

From "Me Talk Pretty One Day" by David Sedaris

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