as in selfness
excessive interest in oneself
a singer-songwriter whose compositions are too often exercises in self-important navel-gazing
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of navel-gazing
Beyond the lifeboat of major film festivals, which still assist a handful of buzzy international and independent films in their treacherous journey to release, such entities as the self-congratulatory, navel-gazing Oscars have seemingly abandoned the inclusion of riskier, daring films.
—
Nicholas Bell, SPIN, 25 Dec. 2024
Ortberg urged staff to focus on beating its French planemaker competitor Airbus instead of navel-gazing at its own issues.
—Byeleanor Pringle, Fortune, 21 Nov. 2024
In the end, this leads to a novel that might be Murakami’s most navel-gazing work, and one that has the unmistakable feel of a coda.
—Bailey Trela, Vulture, 19 Nov. 2024
If the idea of a deep dive into the pop-culture Zeitgeist of Obama’s presidency feels like an exhausting amount of navel-gazing, well, nothing could be more true to the spirit of the time.
—Nate Jones, Vulture, 20 Aug. 2024
See All Example Sentences for navel-gazing
Nicholas Bell, SPIN, 25 Dec. 2024
Ortberg urged staff to focus on beating its French planemaker competitor Airbus instead of navel-gazing at its own issues.
—Byeleanor Pringle, Fortune, 21 Nov. 2024
In the end, this leads to a novel that might be Murakami’s most navel-gazing work, and one that has the unmistakable feel of a coda.
—Bailey Trela, Vulture, 19 Nov. 2024
If the idea of a deep dive into the pop-culture Zeitgeist of Obama’s presidency feels like an exhausting amount of navel-gazing, well, nothing could be more true to the spirit of the time.
—Nate Jones, Vulture, 20 Aug. 2024
See All Example Sentences for navel-gazing
Recent Examples of Synonyms for navel-gazing
Noun
-
Later that day, Cynthia reportedly involved their mother, framing the situation as selfishness.—
Melissa Fleur Afshar,
MSNBC Newsweek,
15 May 2025
-
But according to this Reddit post, sending it out to friends and classmates adds a touch of selfishness.—
Elisabeth Sherman,
Parents,
14 May 2025
Noun
-
As its name implies, the Emotional Support lip balm ($24), is anything but a vanity project.—
Dahvi Shira,
Forbes.com,
13 May 2025
-
According to nutritionist Payal Kothari, author of The Gut, the rise of the high-protein diet has been driven by a mix of vanity and virality.—
Sara Hussain,
Vogue,
12 May 2025
Noun
-
In parenting and co-parenting relationships, narcissism may look like emotional invalidation or using guilt and manipulation to control behavior, McGovern adds.—
Wendy Wisner,
Parents,
15 May 2025
-
These findings suggest that while some dark triad cues may subtly show in facial appearance—particularly narcissism—the connection isn't consistent across traits or genders.—
Alice Gibbs,
MSNBC Newsweek,
12 May 2025
Noun
-
My coat and my ego were a bit tarnished as my husband rushed to help me up.—
James Barron,
New York Times,
15 May 2025
-
Also, any shred of ego one has left after a lifetime of motherhood and being a caregiver/support person will get completely zeroed out while milling around a bunch of athletes.—
Denise Snodell,
Kansas City Star,
14 May 2025
Noun
-
His self-absorption, against the backdrop of such enormous loss, was particularly striking.—
Kevin Johnson,
USA Today,
20 Apr. 2025
-
But, sometimes, accomplishment and self-absorption can go together.—
Jed Brewer,
Rolling Stone,
1 Apr. 2025
Noun
-
But when we’re made to watch Tesfaye sing it in its entirety in an unbroken close-up while crying at the beauty of his own music, the introspection turns to simple self-involvement.—
Charles Bramesco,
IndieWire,
15 May 2025
-
But her apparent passiveness is not as tragic as Bin’s self-involvement.—
Madeline Leung Coleman,
Vulture,
9 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Navel-gazing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/navel-gazing. Accessed 28 May. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share