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

One wrongful death lawsuit against OpenAI alleges that a 56-year-old Connecticut man murdered his mother and took his own life after ChatGPT repeatedly affirmed his paranoid notions about people in his life orchestrating a conspiracy against him. —Miles Klee, Rolling Stone, 14 Dec. 2025

DiCaprio plays Bob Ferguson, a zealous revolutionary turned paranoid burnout, in the latest epic slice of Americana from master filmmaker Paul Thomas Anderson. —Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 12 Dec. 2025

Kimberly Mullins and the couple’s two children are reportedly accusing Stines of assault and battery, while alleging that three other sheriff’s employees did not warn or protect the judge from Stines, who was showing signs of being anxious, violently paranoid and psychotic. —Sarah Rumpf-Whitten , Julia Bonavita, FOXNews.com, 11 Dec. 2025

Her book proceeds in a somewhat paranoid style, which is justified by its content. —Literary Hub, 11 Dec. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1901, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing paranoid

• paranoid schizophrenia

Rhymes for paranoid

• adenoid
• alkaloid
• amoeboid
• amyloid
• aneroid
• anthropoid
• arachnoid
• asteroid
• benzenoid
• carcinoid
• celluloid
• coronoid

Kids Definition

paranoid

1 of 2 adjective

para·​noid

ˈpar-ə-ˌnȯid

1

: resembling paranoia

2

: marked especially by suspiciousness, distrust, and feelings of persecution

3

: extremely fearful

grew paranoid about losing her job

paranoid

2 of 2 noun

: one who is paranoid

Medical Definition

paranoid

1 of 2 adjective

para·​noid ˈpar-ə-ˌnȯid 

variants also paranoidal

ˌpar-ə-ˈnȯid-ᵊl 

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