paranoiac

adjective

variants also paranoic
as in paranoid

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Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for paranoiac
  1. paranoid
  2. neurotic
  3. schizophrenic
  4. schizoid
  5. delusional
  6. obsessive-compulsive
  7. delirious
  8. sociopathic
Adjective
  • The bald guy lecturing me on how to get the money looked real enough, but the question of his true being kept rattling around my increasingly paranoid mind.
    — Vinson Cunningham, New Yorker, 29 Sep. 2026
  • Hill became increasingly paranoid and developed delusions that she was being surveilled.
    — Rebecca White, New York Daily News, 28 Sep. 2026
Definition of paranoid
Adjective
  • Part of what fueled the ups and downs was the sense that Paul Baker is genially open to whatever life might throw at him — a personality type engineered to drive the acting-out Issa and the neurotic Anton to distraction.
    — Daniel D'Addario, Variety, 30 Sep. 2026
  • He is admittedly relieved that Skarsgård was able to bring alive Bill’s gentle, yet neurotic nature.
    — Lily Ford, HollywoodReporter, 29 Sep. 2026
Definition of neurotic
Adjective
  • These days, large language models are pushing the line between schizophrenic break and reality closer than ever before.
    — Joe Wilkins, Futurism, 9 Sep. 2026
  • As her life is starting, her mother suffers from an acute schizophrenic episode.
    — Rafa Sales Ross, Variety, 16 June 2026
Definition of schizophrenic
Adjective
  • The artist adopts a schizoid persona, with multiple voices flowing out of him, and swerves between lucid social criticism—about the history of slavery or of higher education—and total gibberish.
    — Zachary Fine, New Yorker, 10 Aug. 2026
  • 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
Definition of schizoid
Adjective
  • The manuscript Wayne read to us that night chronicled his involvement with Gloria Swanson, the towering star of Hollywood’s Golden Age who enjoyed latter-day acclaim in 1950 playing a delusional has-been in Sunset Boulevard.
    — Mike Hogan, Vanity Fair, 24 Sep. 2026
  • O’Donnell’s characters are usually fresh out of divorces and staying afloat on waves of delusional self-confidence and optimism.
    — Kathryn VanArendonk, Vulture, 21 Sep. 2026
Definition of delusional
Adjective
  • No consistent associations stood out for obsessive-compulsive disorder, and associations between infections and ADHD could also be accounted for by other relationship factors.
    — Mike McRae September 24, New Atlas, 25 Sep. 2026
  • These tics often come and go, change over time and may occur along with attention problems, anxiety or obsessive-compulsive behaviors.
    — Michael Okun, The Conversation, 9 Sep. 2026
Definition of obsessive-compulsive
Adjective
  • The sets have too many doors, the scenes have a delirious number of extras and the actors yell their lines over the distracting clatter of crackling fireplaces, beeping machines and ticking clocks.
    — Amy Nicholson, Los Angeles Times, 29 Sep. 2026
  • Similarly, Zo — seen recently as the monster hunter in Na Hong-jin’s delirious sci-fi action epic, Hope — stays for most of the running time just the right side of smug entitlement.
    — David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 6 Sep. 2026
Definition of delirious
Adjective
  • Matching the sociopathic charm and menace of Tom Ripley is a tall order, and Ehrenreich is a fantastic match for it.
    — Joe Reid, Vulture, 21 Sep. 2026
  • Some saw this reaction as sociopathic, but its extremity was the very point.
    — Elizabeth Nicholas, Vanity Fair, 9 Sep. 2026
Definition of sociopathic
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.

Browse Nearby Words

paranoia
paranoiac
paranoid
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Cite this Entry

“Paranoiac.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/paranoiac. Accessed 4 Oct. 2026.

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