paranoid
adjective
para·noid
ˈper-ə-ˌnȯid 
ˌpa-rə-
variants
or less commonly paranoidal
ˌper-ə-ˈnȯi-dᵊl
ˌpa-rə-
1
: characterized by or resembling paranoia or paranoid schizophrenia
a paranoid psychiatric patient
2
: characterized by suspiciousness, persecutory trends, or megalomania
behaving in a paranoid manner with accusations of persecutions
3
: extremely fearful
was so paranoid that he was afraid to walk the streets
paranoid
noun
Examples of paranoid in a Sentence
I guess I was just being paranoid.
She's a little paranoid about her job.
It's nothing more than a paranoid fantasy.
Recent Examples on the Web
Coon, 44, stars opposite Namir Smallwood, who plays Peter, the paranoid former soldier whose conspiracy theories take hold inside a rundown Oklahoma motel room.
—
Dave Quinn, PEOPLE, 6 Jan. 2026
Trump had won by fifty-three points there in 2016, and Greene’s paranoid pugnacity seemed like a good fit, if voters could stomach an outsider.
—Charles Bethea, New Yorker, 5 Jan. 2026
In Bug on Broadway, Carrie Coon plays a small town waitress caught up in a web of paranoid delusions and conspiracy theories.
—Caitlin Huston, HollywoodReporter, 5 Jan. 2026
The unlock in my brain for why conspiracy theories are so popular now in, in culture—they’ve always been popular; obviously the paranoid mind is a fixture in all of history, but especially American history.
—David Frum, The Atlantic, 31 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for paranoid
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Dave Quinn, PEOPLE, 6 Jan. 2026
Trump had won by fifty-three points there in 2016, and Greene’s paranoid pugnacity seemed like a good fit, if voters could stomach an outsider.
—Charles Bethea, New Yorker, 5 Jan. 2026
In Bug on Broadway, Carrie Coon plays a small town waitress caught up in a web of paranoid delusions and conspiracy theories.
—Caitlin Huston, HollywoodReporter, 5 Jan. 2026
The unlock in my brain for why conspiracy theories are so popular now in, in culture—they’ve always been popular; obviously the paranoid mind is a fixture in all of history, but especially American history.
—David Frum, The Atlantic, 31 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for paranoid
Cite this Entry
“Paranoid.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/paranoid. Accessed 12 Jan. 2026.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
paranoid
1 of 2 adjective
para·noid
ˈpar-ə-ˌnȯid
variants
also paranoidal
1
: characterized by or resembling paranoia or paranoid schizophrenia
2
: characterized by suspiciousness, persecutory trends, or megalomania
paranoid
2 of 2 noun
: one affected with paranoia or paranoid schizophrenia
called also paranoiac
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