as in jerk
a person who believes that he or she has unlimited power or importance
Their CEO is a real megalomaniac who feels she can partake in any luxury with the company's profits.
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Recent Examples of megalomaniac
Stark, having been elected governor and already well along in his fateful descent from an idealistic man of the people to an entirely corrupt megalomaniac, is on the way to visit his childhood home.
—
Jill Lepore, New Yorker, 12 May 2026
And leading the country is a megalomaniac — Anthony Starr’s always riveting Homelander — who might be going insane.
—James Hibberd, HollywoodReporter, 7 Apr. 2026
Trump has a child’s attention span, a megalomaniac’s urge for a ribbon cutting before his term ends, zero willingness to listen to anyone who doesn not agree with him, and — most of all — an unshakable belief that his taste and judgment is far better than any arts commission’s.
—Christopher Bonanos, Curbed, 1 Apr. 2026
Henry is a megalomaniac and a complete wuss.
—Amanda Whiting, Vulture, 23 Feb. 2026
There are still many in this country who value truth, who believe that history should be preserved and not erased, who understand that constitutional rights should not be swept away to suit the whims of a megalomaniac, and who refuse to wallow in ignorance and hate.
—Dp Opinion, Denver Post, 11 Feb. 2026
Pierre Bergé called me a megalomaniac and threw me out the next season.
—James Fallon, Footwear News, 10 Sep. 2025
The Houthis are led by a family of clerical megalomaniacs who have been prophesying apocalyptic war since the early 2000s.
—Graeme Wood, The Atlantic, 2 Sep. 2025
Jill Lepore, New Yorker, 12 May 2026
And leading the country is a megalomaniac — Anthony Starr’s always riveting Homelander — who might be going insane.
—James Hibberd, HollywoodReporter, 7 Apr. 2026
Trump has a child’s attention span, a megalomaniac’s urge for a ribbon cutting before his term ends, zero willingness to listen to anyone who doesn not agree with him, and — most of all — an unshakable belief that his taste and judgment is far better than any arts commission’s.
—Christopher Bonanos, Curbed, 1 Apr. 2026
Henry is a megalomaniac and a complete wuss.
—Amanda Whiting, Vulture, 23 Feb. 2026
There are still many in this country who value truth, who believe that history should be preserved and not erased, who understand that constitutional rights should not be swept away to suit the whims of a megalomaniac, and who refuse to wallow in ignorance and hate.
—Dp Opinion, Denver Post, 11 Feb. 2026
Pierre Bergé called me a megalomaniac and threw me out the next season.
—James Fallon, Footwear News, 10 Sep. 2025
The Houthis are led by a family of clerical megalomaniacs who have been prophesying apocalyptic war since the early 2000s.
—Graeme Wood, The Atlantic, 2 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for megalomaniac
Noun
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His profession is to be the screaming jerk on reality shows, and his house burns down.—
Mekishana Pierre,
Entertainment Weekly,
28 May 2026
-
These measurements enabled scientists to identify sudden changes linked to the Pacific reversal and a geomagnetic disturbance known as the 2017 geomagnetic jerk.—
Atharva Gosavi,
Interesting Engineering,
25 May 2026
Noun
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Gilbert, who clearly stated that UGA was his leader heading into his official visit to UGA last week, committed to the Tigers on Monday evening on the heels of his official visit.—
Jeff Sentell,
AJC.com,
9 June 2026
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The agencies were left out of a broader Department of Homeland Security appropriations bill that passed Congress in late April on the heels of a record-long partial government shutdown.—
Zachary Schermele,
USA Today,
9 June 2026
Noun
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The final Scary Movie trailer opens with a fittingly grotesque send-up of Terrifier, the ultra-bloody, low-budget clown slasher that's built a cult following.—
Ryan Coleman,
Entertainment Weekly,
5 June 2026
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What appears to be a Unitree G1 humanoid robot wearing a blue clown wig can be seen confidently executing a roundhouse kick — squarely in the stomach of a young child in the audience, causing the kid to double over in pain.—
Victor Tangermann,
Futurism,
4 June 2026
Noun
-
Clooney might be known as the joker of the two.—
Stephanie Sengwe,
PEOPLE,
22 May 2026
-
Like any public hearing, there were a few jokers who had some strange outbursts, but the majority of the over a dozen speakers weren’t satisfied with Gower’s presentation and used their times to ask questions of the owners as to what has taken so long with this project.—
Brian Welk,
IndieWire,
12 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Megalomaniac.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/megalomaniac. Accessed 13 Jun. 2026.
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