1
as in illusory
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2
as in delusionary
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Recent Examples of delusional
But for a few unlucky people, chatbots powered by the technology have become a gaslighting, delusional menace.
—
Diane Brady, Fortune, 20 Oct. 2025
Her protagonist, known to have been derived from herself in a few other ways, blunders along and is charming but delusional, unlike Austen’s fiercely independent and witty Elizabeth Bennet.
—Literary Hub, 15 Oct. 2025
Either way, Bravo cameras will always reward a delusional queen.
—Shelby Stewart, Essence, 4 Oct. 2025
So many women who have gotten famous on Bravo did so by being mean, delusional, or mean and delusional, give or take a drinking problem.
—Brian Moylan, Vulture, 29 Sep. 2025
Like, our delusional friend Hope is so positive.
—Shelby Wax, Vogue, 26 Sep. 2025
It has been mentioned in this space that expecting a young quarterback to lead a team there is nigh on delusional, and odd for a team that for the past two years has made a ton of good free-agent moves.
—John Shipley, Twin Cities, 22 Sep. 2025
But critics warned the cost estimates were far too low, construction deadlines were more delusional than optimistic, and that promised multibillion-dollar investments by private firms would never emerge because state law barred investors from public subsidies if train operations lost money.
—U T Editorial Board, San Diego Union-Tribune, 19 Sep. 2025
For some of us long-suffering fans, football inspires less Messianic zeal than an annual reminder that this is a dark and cruel world and any delusional preseason hope will be quickly and thoroughly snuffed out.
—Jake Coyle, Boston Herald, 19 Sep. 2025
Diane Brady, Fortune, 20 Oct. 2025
Her protagonist, known to have been derived from herself in a few other ways, blunders along and is charming but delusional, unlike Austen’s fiercely independent and witty Elizabeth Bennet.
—Literary Hub, 15 Oct. 2025
Either way, Bravo cameras will always reward a delusional queen.
—Shelby Stewart, Essence, 4 Oct. 2025
So many women who have gotten famous on Bravo did so by being mean, delusional, or mean and delusional, give or take a drinking problem.
—Brian Moylan, Vulture, 29 Sep. 2025
Like, our delusional friend Hope is so positive.
—Shelby Wax, Vogue, 26 Sep. 2025
It has been mentioned in this space that expecting a young quarterback to lead a team there is nigh on delusional, and odd for a team that for the past two years has made a ton of good free-agent moves.
—John Shipley, Twin Cities, 22 Sep. 2025
But critics warned the cost estimates were far too low, construction deadlines were more delusional than optimistic, and that promised multibillion-dollar investments by private firms would never emerge because state law barred investors from public subsidies if train operations lost money.
—U T Editorial Board, San Diego Union-Tribune, 19 Sep. 2025
For some of us long-suffering fans, football inspires less Messianic zeal than an annual reminder that this is a dark and cruel world and any delusional preseason hope will be quickly and thoroughly snuffed out.
—Jake Coyle, Boston Herald, 19 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for delusional
Adjective
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Registration requirements today are largely illusory, with huge swaths of the non-citizen population exempt from registration and carry requirements.—
Robert Alexander,
MSNBC Newsweek,
14 Oct. 2025
-
But even if that purported lunar companion proves illusory, this new method of tracking down mysterious sources of unexplained material around giant exoplanets could become a definitive pathway for future exomoon finds.—
Nola Taylor Tillman,
Scientific American,
13 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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Sam Levinson’s hallucinatory high school drama Euphoria was renewed for a third season back in 2022, though its future remained uncertain for some time.—
Radhika Seth,
Vogue,
17 Oct. 2025
-
Harwicz’s novels are more hallucinatory than supernatural—but a more provocative distinction between her books and others in this semi-subgenre is that, for her characters, motherhood does not cause animal rage and instability so much as instantiate them.—
Jessica Winter,
New Yorker,
8 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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The book hinges on a conflict between self-righteous Burghers, who live in cities, and resentful, paranoid rural people known as Yeomen.—
Michelle Goldberg,
Mercury News,
23 Oct. 2025
-
However, once a paranoid hermit nation of Europe, after 1992 Albania began to emerge from its fortress mindset.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
22 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
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
-
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 exchange is later revealed to be a schizophrenic episode.—
JR Radcliffe,
jsonline.com,
6 Oct. 2025
-
The investigation confirmed a mental health component to the case, suggesting that Ricklefs may have been experiencing a schizophrenic episode, according to the news release.—
Natalie Davies,
Freep.com,
1 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
Their personas could be withholding, eccentric, neurotic, ambiguous, strange.—
Benjamin Svetkey,
HollywoodReporter,
22 Oct. 2025
-
Vanya is a closeted gay man who shuns intimacy and Sonia is a neurotic spinster who feels unnoticed and unloved.—
Pam Kragen,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
13 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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Over the last few months, there’s been a surge of similar and even more surreal edits.—
Kieran Press-Reynolds,
Pitchfork,
24 Oct. 2025
-
This aerial perspective provides a surreal view of the otherworldly environment.—
Gwen Nicol,
Travel + Leisure,
22 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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The idea of a schizoid Lady M is not entirely without appeal, but despite strong performances across the board, the work runs aground fast.—
Rhoda Feng,
Washington Post,
14 Apr. 2024
-
The entire movie, of course, was a goof, a schizoid cardboard Vaudeville horror burlesque shot in two days and a night by Roger Corman.—
Owen Gleiberman,
Variety,
12 Apr. 2024
Cite this Entry
“Delusional.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/delusional. Accessed 29 Oct. 2025.
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