codependency

noun

co·​de·​pen·​den·​cy ˌkō-di-ˈpen-dən(t)-sē 

: a psychological condition or a relationship in which a person manifesting low self-esteem and a strong desire for approval has an unhealthy attachment to another often controlling or manipulative person (such as a person with an addiction to alcohol or drugs)

broadly : dependence on the needs of or on control by another

Did you know?

Dependency on addictive substances has been known for centuries, but the concept of codependency got its name only as recently as 1979. For many of us, codependency isn't easy to understand; we may keep asking "Why doesn't she just leave him?" and find it hard to accept the answers we get. Codependents usually don't share their partners' addiction, but their lives tend to be taken over with the burden of caring for and protecting the spouse or partner. In recent years, people have started claiming that all kinds of conditions—anorexia, overeating, gambling, fear of intimacy, etc.—can result in codependency. Many experts think all of this has gone too far; still, almost everyone agrees that spouses of alcoholics and drug addicts face unique difficulties and should look for support and advice anywhere they can find it.

Examples of codependency in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The lawsuit stresses that the movies center around a couple whose bodies become physically fused together as a metaphor for codependency. —Winston Cho, HollywoodReporter, 13 May 2025

Told from the fragmented and colliding perspectives of Smith, her psychiatrist, and her former lover, the film explores themes of fame, codependency, and self-destruction in a fractured American psyche. —Jill Goldsmith, Deadline, 6 May 2025

This pattern can lead to codependency or an unbalanced relationship dynamic where one partner constantly gives while the other takes. —Mark Travers, Forbes, 15 Mar. 2025

In a TikTok video, Zander attributed the split to unresolved patterns of codependency, which led to their breakup after four years of being together. —Josh Hammer, MSNBC Newsweek, 1 Apr. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1977, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for codependency

• independency
• ascendancy
• ascendency
• dependency
• interdependency
• superintendency
• pendency
• tendency

Medical Definition

codependency

noun

co·​de·​pen·​den·​cy ˌkō-di-ˈpen-dən-sē 

variants or co-dependency also codependence or co-dependence

-dən(t)s 

plural codependencies

: a psychological condition or a relationship in which a person manifesting low self-esteem and a strong desire for approval has an unhealthy attachment to another person and places the needs of that person before his or her own

Note: In codependency, a person tries to satisfy the needs of another who is often controlling or manipulative and who may have an addictive or emotionally unstable personality.

broadly : dependence on the needs of or control by another