self-deceit

noun

self-de·​ceit ˌself-di-ˈsēt How to pronounce self-deceit (audio)
plural self-deceits
: the act or an instance of deceiving oneself or the state of being deceived by oneself : self-deception
Mrs. Grant … could, by the easiest self-deceit, persuade herself that she was doing the kindest thing by Fanny …Jane Austen

Examples of self-deceit in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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But what isn’t on the page is there in Danes’ layered performance, and in Rhys’ and Snow’s and that of other key cast members, as characters bound together by self-deceit. Judy Berman, Time, 13 Nov. 2025 Alex’s reflexive duplicity is rivaled only by her self-deceit. Ron Charles, Washington Post, 9 May 2023

Word History

First Known Use

1590, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of self-deceit was in 1590

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Cite this Entry

“Self-deceit.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/self-deceit. Accessed 26 Nov. 2025.

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