1
as in illusory
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2
as in delusionary
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Recent Examples of delusional
Some incels use the term in a derogatory fashion, believing those who aspire to ascension are delusional.
—
David Faris, TheWeek, 8 Apr. 2026
Warriors coach Steve Kerr emerged from the chaos that was Sunday’s 117-116 loss to Houston and offered a quote that felt like a Rorschach test for the delusional or drunk (off Steph Curry’s brilliance, of course).
—Dieter Kurtenbach, Mercury News, 6 Apr. 2026
When this fails to happen—and her hopes of marrying off a perfect daughter are dashed—Barbara grows hateful and ultimately delusional.
—Boris Kachka, The Atlantic, 3 Apr. 2026
The study found that a technological flaw already tied to some high-profile cases of delusional and suicidal behavior in vulnerable populations is also pervasive across a wide range of people’s interactions with chatbots.
—Matt O'Brien, Fortune, 29 Mar. 2026
That’s perhaps for the best, given the ongoing discussions surrounding AI psychosis, a troubling trend that has caused an alarming wave of mental health crises as the tech coaxes some users into spirals of paranoid and delusional behavior.
—Victor Tangermann, Futurism, 26 Mar. 2026
Just as her mother’s signature quality was yearning, Minnelli’s signature quality is delusional optimism.
—Matt Weinstock, New Yorker, 25 Mar. 2026
This time, the combination of Robby’s short fuse and delusional idealism has diminished returns.
—Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 24 Mar. 2026
What if a slightly delusional but still charming actress faded toward irrelevance, only to claw her way back by way of a reality TV show?
—Chris Gardner, HollywoodReporter, 18 Mar. 2026
David Faris, TheWeek, 8 Apr. 2026
Warriors coach Steve Kerr emerged from the chaos that was Sunday’s 117-116 loss to Houston and offered a quote that felt like a Rorschach test for the delusional or drunk (off Steph Curry’s brilliance, of course).
—Dieter Kurtenbach, Mercury News, 6 Apr. 2026
When this fails to happen—and her hopes of marrying off a perfect daughter are dashed—Barbara grows hateful and ultimately delusional.
—Boris Kachka, The Atlantic, 3 Apr. 2026
The study found that a technological flaw already tied to some high-profile cases of delusional and suicidal behavior in vulnerable populations is also pervasive across a wide range of people’s interactions with chatbots.
—Matt O'Brien, Fortune, 29 Mar. 2026
That’s perhaps for the best, given the ongoing discussions surrounding AI psychosis, a troubling trend that has caused an alarming wave of mental health crises as the tech coaxes some users into spirals of paranoid and delusional behavior.
—Victor Tangermann, Futurism, 26 Mar. 2026
Just as her mother’s signature quality was yearning, Minnelli’s signature quality is delusional optimism.
—Matt Weinstock, New Yorker, 25 Mar. 2026
This time, the combination of Robby’s short fuse and delusional idealism has diminished returns.
—Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 24 Mar. 2026
What if a slightly delusional but still charming actress faded toward irrelevance, only to claw her way back by way of a reality TV show?
—Chris Gardner, HollywoodReporter, 18 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for delusional
Adjective
-
Physicists treat the volume of the black hole as illusory, like a hologram.—
Shalma Wegsman,
Quanta Magazine,
30 Mar. 2026
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If the recent leftward shift is sustained, or the earlier shift to the right was illusory, the effects on the politics of 2026 could be large, potentially putting control of Congress in the hands of Latino voters.—
Gary M. Segura,
The Conversation,
23 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Bradlow and Crowley conceded that agents can be error-prone, even hallucinatory, and on a mass scale, that could lead to widespread errors.—
Nick Lichtenberg,
Fortune,
26 Mar. 2026
-
Such hallucinatory citations are, according to judges and lawyers, troubling at a variety of levels, not the least of which is their threat to the integrity of the judicial system.—
Edmund H. Mahony,
Hartford Courant,
1 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Safety awareness hasn’t gone anywhere, but the approach tends to be more strategic, rather than paranoid.—
Lauren Schuster,
Kansas City Star,
3 Apr. 2026
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While there has always been a thriving industry of paranoid books and films, modern conspiracism has avenues of distribution and incentive that Cold War cranks and 19th-century pamphleteers could have only dreamed of.—
Mike Rothschild,
Big Think,
31 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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This isn’t callousness or delusive optimism but, rather, a rebellion against the suffocating expectation that the elderly have foreclosed the possibility of joy.—
Hillary Kelly,
The New Yorker,
21 Feb. 2024
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To separate art from its historical framework is futile, and to reject it in an effort to censor past violence is a delusive act of virtue signaling.—
WSJ,
WSJ,
5 July 2022
Adjective
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The ongoing controversy surrounding the police shooting of a mentalliy ill Queens schizophrenic man who charged at cops with a knife ratcheted up a notch Wednesday with the release of 911 audio the NYPD says makes clear police were going to be responding to the episode.—
Rocco Parascandola,
New York Daily News,
4 Feb. 2026
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The most compelling aspect of Newsom’s biography is his schizophrenic upbringing, vis-à-vis wealth.—
Maya Singer,
Vogue,
1 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
And thus began a most surreal standoff.—
Rich Schapiro,
NBC news,
3 Apr. 2026
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The Norwegian filmmaker’s last effort was Dream Scenario, a surreal comedy that never quite gelled.—
David Sims,
The Atlantic,
3 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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With many original cast members returning (except Erik Per Sullivan’s Dewey, now recast with Caleb Ellsworth-Clark), Kiana Madeira joins as Malcolm’s girlfriend Tristan, while Keeley Karsten plays his similarly genius-neurotic daughter Leah.—
Natalie Oganesyan,
Deadline,
5 Apr. 2026
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The anti-pop animus of classic rock criticism reflected nothing so much as a neurotic puritanism, or maybe just a snobbish inability to hear the deep beauty of pop.—
Owen Gleiberman,
Variety,
29 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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Engendered by the ubiquity of stable and robust WiFi and the incredible power of the smartphone’s system-on-a-chip design, the smart everything era demonstrates the full transfer of the smartness imaginary.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
2 Apr. 2026
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Following Christopher Columbus’ first voyage, the rulers of Portugal and Spain, by the Treaty of Tordesillas (1494), partitioned the non-Christian world between them by an imaginary line in the Atlantic, 370 leagues (about 1,300 miles) west of the Cape Verde Islands.—
Encyclopedia Britannica,
Encyclopedia Britannica,
2 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Delusional.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/delusional. Accessed 11 Apr. 2026.
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