sociopath
Americannoun
-
sociopaths
plural
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of sociopath
Compare meaning
How does sociopath compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
Explanation
A sociopath is a person with a mental illness that manifests in extremely antisocial behavior and the inability to distinguish right from wrong. You're probably right to be afraid of a sociopath. Pathology means illness, and so socio- pathology means social illness. If someone is a sociopath, that means that they have a social sickness––they lack the ability to be social. Many movies and TV crime shows feature plots involving sociopaths, but hopefully the TV is the only place you ever encounter sociopaths.
Vocabulary lists containing sociopath
Common Senses: Path ("Feeling")
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Frankenwords: Words with Roots from Different Languages
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
We the People: Soc
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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:
Why not plant a high-functioning sociopath as a teacher in a building full of obnoxious, attitudinal, hormonal basket cases?
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 21, 2026
“For over three years, Anna’s family and friends have waited for justice. Today the jury has spoken, returned its guilty verdict for first-degree murder against this sociopath and justice has arrived,” Los Angeles County Dist.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 4, 2026
Just stand there and stare like a sociopath.
From Salon ● Nov. 9, 2025
She laughs and jokes that "I'd be like, 'Oh no I found a sociopath'".
From BBC ● Jan. 22, 2025
The kind that makes me wonder if my brother is a sociopath.
From "We Are the Ants" by Shaun David Hutchinson
One of the theater’s more prominent sociopaths gets a makeover in “Hedda,” director Nia DaCosta’s reimagining of “Hedda Gabler,” with an approach that opens up the play—and an interpretive can of worms.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 28, 2025
Psychologists, too, make this mistake, believing that sociopaths are not strategic but, rather, mentally ill, because they were traumatized in childhood.
From Slate ● Oct. 29, 2024
It's just his special flourish to imagine the secret leaders are cat-loving, child-hating sociopaths.
From Salon ● Aug. 13, 2024
She mimicked the emotions she lacked to fit into a world where novels and films tended to depict sociopaths as violent and soulless transgressors treading the fringes.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 2, 2024
I’ve heard about sociopaths, people who connect with no one but themselves and their own self-interests.
From "The Adoration of Jenna Fox" by Mary E. Pearson
Random Word
Spin the wheel and learn a new word!
Get a wordDefinitions 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.
