conceit

1 of 2

noun

con·​ceit kən-ˈsēt 

1

a

: favorable opinion

especially : excessive appreciation of one's own worth or virtue

… the landlord's conceit of his own superior knowledge …

—Adam Smith

b(1)

: a result of mental activity : thought

(2)

: individual opinion

2

a

: a fanciful idea

b

: an elaborate or strained metaphor

The poem abounds in metaphysical conceits.

c

: use or presence of such conceits in poetry

d

: an organizing theme or concept

… found his conceit for the film early …

—Peter Wilkinson

… the historian's conceit that the past is forever prologue …

—Leon V. Sigal

3

: a fancy item or trifle

Conceits were fancy desserts, made either of sugar … or pastry.

—Francie Owen

conceit

2 of 2

verb

conceited; conceiting; conceits

transitive verb

1

chiefly dialectal : imagine

2

dialectal British : to take a fancy to

3

obsolete : conceive, understand

Synonyms of conceit

Noun

• metaphor

Verb

• imagine
• envision
• see
• picture
• dream
• fantasy
• vision

Examples of conceit in a Sentence

Noun

His conceit has earned him many enemies.

the conceit that the crowd at the outdoor rock concert was a vast sea of people waving to the beat of the music

Verb

after a huge meal like that, I cannot conceit eating another thing for the rest of the day

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

The double, or doppelgänger, is a recurring conceit in myth and literature. — Cressida Leyshon, New Yorker, 6 Sep. 2026

The conceit — Monroe imagined at the century mark, walking into an audition and finally allowed to speak her mind — arrived nearly whole. — Clayton Davis, Variety, 5 Sep. 2026

But the conceit, coupled with an expert but low-key approach to service, works beautifully. — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 2 Sep. 2026

We are asked constantly to dilate and contract—to adjust from contemplative darkness to the California sun, from specific detail to overarching conceit, from stillness to activity. — Katy Barkan, Artforum, 1 Sep. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Noun and Verb

Middle English, from Anglo-French, from conceivre — see conceive

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1b(1)

Verb

1557, in the meaning defined at sense 3

Phrases Containing conceit

• self-conceit

Rhymes for conceit

• amit
• athlete
• backseat
• blackfeet
• broadsheet
• browbeat
• buckwheat
• compete
• compleat
• complete
• concrete
• crabmeat

Kids Definition

conceit

noun

con·​ceit

kən-ˈsēt

1

: too much pride in one's own worth or virtue

2

a

: an idea showing imagination

b

: a complicated way of expressing something