identity crisis

noun

1

: personal psychosocial conflict especially in adolescence that involves confusion about one's social role and often a sense of loss of continuity to one's personality

2

: a state of confusion in an entity, institution, or organization regarding its nature or direction

England is the last place on earth one would expect to find a national identity crisis, yet … the English are now asking, "What is my nation?"

—Wilson Quarterly

Examples of identity crisis in a Sentence

He is suffering from an identity crisis.

Recent Examples on the Web

So this is a real problem for the party in terms of this identity crisis. —NBC news, 19 Apr. 2026

Over the next decade and a half Allen continued to evolve stylistically and lyrically, moving from pop culture commentary to more emotionally revealing narratives about marital breakdowns, motherhood, and personal identity crises. —Encyclopedia Britannica, 10 Apr. 2026

Injuries, offensive identity crises and a lack of meaningful response from the front office will do that. —Tyler Estep, AJC.com, 27 Mar. 2026

But if the 3-year-olds are already identifying the identity crisis, then saying the start was inauspicious is an understatement. —Dieter Kurtenbach, Mercury News, 26 Mar. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1941, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for identity crisis

• ecdysis
• haemoptysis
• hemoptysis
• lysis
• phthisis

Medical Definition

identity crisis

noun

: personal psychosocial conflict especially in adolescence that involves confusion about one's social role and often a sense of loss of continuity to one's personality