narcissistic
adjective
nar·cis·sis·tic
ˌnär-sə-ˈsi-stik 
: of, relating to, or characterized by narcissism: such as
a
: extremely self-centered with an exaggerated sense of self-importance : marked by or characteristic of excessive admiration of or infatuation with oneself
a narcissistic personality
He was a very narcissistic man, not too concerned with the world.—
Oliver Sacks
Oliver SacksBut when a mother's narcissistic needs are so great that she cannot relate to her child as he really is, she loves her child as a self-object—that is, as someone put on this earth to meet her needs.—Sue Erikson Bloland
see also narcissistic personality disorder
Sue Erikson Bloland
b
: displaying or marked by excessive concern with one's own physical appearance
… she describes the bind created for women by the judgment that a woman preoccupied with her looks is narcissistic and a woman who is not is unfeminine.—Carol Gilligan
Carol GilliganOur narcissistic culture has turned us into a nation of body-image "junkies" using everything in our power to carve, reshape, remold, and recast our bodies' natural shapes and processes so that they are better fitted to our desires.—Andrew Kimbrell
Andrew KimbrellExamples of narcissistic in a Sentence
trying to raise the social consciousness of the normally narcissistic Hollywood community
Recent Examples on the Web
Narcissism was then measured for each CEO using our coding approach, producing continuous scores that range from lower to higher levels of narcissistic admiration and rivalry.
—Paul Sanchez Ruiz, The Conversation, 6 Apr. 2026
Her mother had abandoned the family, and her father, a jazz pianist, was narcissistic to the point of cruelty.
—Literary Hub, 3 Apr. 2026
The present calamity is only exacerbated by the problems that already existed in their frayed union of over 20 years — including narcissistic tendencies for him and accountability issues for her.
—Sarah Rodman, Entertainment Weekly, 31 Mar. 2026
Some people look at it, at it as this means of sort of, narcissistic ego gratification.
—Outside Online, 25 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for narcissistic
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Paul Sanchez Ruiz, The Conversation, 6 Apr. 2026
Her mother had abandoned the family, and her father, a jazz pianist, was narcissistic to the point of cruelty.
—Literary Hub, 3 Apr. 2026
The present calamity is only exacerbated by the problems that already existed in their frayed union of over 20 years — including narcissistic tendencies for him and accountability issues for her.
—Sarah Rodman, Entertainment Weekly, 31 Mar. 2026
Some people look at it, at it as this means of sort of, narcissistic ego gratification.
—Outside Online, 25 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for narcissistic
Cite this Entry
“Narcissistic.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/narcissistic. Accessed 8 Apr. 2026.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
narcissistic
adjective
nar·cis·sis·tic
ˌnär-sə-ˈsis-tik
: of, relating to, or characterized by narcissism or narcissistic personality disorder
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
