SELF-DIRECTED Synonyms: 107 Similar and Opposite Words

self-directed

adjective

Definition of self-directed

as in self-indulgent

Related Words

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Dissimilar Words

as in independent

Related Words

Dissimilar Words

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 self-directed But that change needs to be self-directed, coming from within each individual. — Goth Shakira contributing, Los Angeles Times, 8 May 2026 While other Coachella performers like Katseye and Lucky Brand collaborator Addison Rae have each carved out distinct aesthetic identities, festivalgoers are drawing less direct inspiration from performers’ styles, instead embracing a more individual and self-directed approach to dressing. — Angela Velasquez, Footwear News, 3 Apr. 2026 Life feels self-directed rather than dictated by external pressure or comparison. — Larae Quy, Forbes.com, 25 Feb. 2026 Trade The Pool aims to help people become more financially capable and self-directed. — Matthew Kayser, USA Today, 5 Jan. 2026 See All Example Sentences for self-directed

Recent Examples of Synonyms for self-directed

Adjective

This is the man who made the two-and-a-half-hour, stream-of-consciousness passion project Bardo (2022), after all, which several critics also found rather abrasive and self-indulgent.

— Jennifer Ouellette, ArsTechnica, 7 Oct. 2026
Retailers globally have quickly adopted the trend, which allows consumers to feel smarter in their shopping - being both self-indulgent and financially responsible at exactly the same time.

— Kate Hardcastle, Forbes.com, 28 May 2026

Definition of self-indulgent

Adjective

Four years ago, Tennessee's governor ordered another independent review into capital punishment after abruptly stopping the April 2022 execution of Oscar Smith.

— Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 3 Oct. 2026
LionTree is an independent banking firm, investing in companies such as Fanatics and Fubo and advising high-profile deals such as Amazon’s acquisition of MGM and the merger of CBS and Viacom.

— Laya Neelakandan, CNBC, 3 Oct. 2026

Definition of independent

Adjective

Meanwhile, Johnson reprises his role as Moana's bantering reluctant partner, the shapeshifting trickster demigod Maui, alongside Jemaine Clement again voicing the conceited giant crustacean Tamatoa.

— Brian Truitt, USA Today, 9 July 2026
Avoid Burying Praise in Negatives To avoid making children too conceited, parents might bury praise in the midst of negatives.

— Wayne Parker, Parents, 8 Mar. 2026

Definition of conceited

Adjective

In general, the Strengthening Institutions Program seeks to help schools become self-sufficient and expand their capacity to serve low-income students.

— Carole Carlson, Chicago Tribune, 3 Oct. 2026
So in some areas, Gaza was once self-sufficient, in terms of producing olive oil, olives, zucchini, eggplants, cucumbers, and peppers, and of course tomatoes.

— Isaac Chotiner, New Yorker, 21 Sep. 2026

Definition of self-sufficient

Adjective

Claire’s elective death therefore remains a problematic choice for some viewers, an act of vainglorious selfishness from a woman who was never terribly nice to begin with.

— Leslie Felperin, HollywoodReporter, 24 May 2026
Melodramatic and vainglorious, moody and capricious, a fidgety, neurotic hypochondriac, Stalin was a bundle of appalling contradictions.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 25 Feb. 2026

Definition of vainglorious

Adjective

Shaheen and Wicker in their letter sent late Tuesday are urging the administration to take several specific steps to impose the sanctions regime.

— Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 8 Oct. 2026
How Doctors Diagnose and Treat It Health care providers use the American Psychiatric Association’s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders to classify trypanophobia as a specific phobia of the blood-injection-injury type.

— Samantha Agate, Charlotte Observer, 8 Oct. 2026

Definition of specific

Adjective

California shouldn’t be complacent, but the state isn’t slouching on preparation, or resolve.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 25 Sep. 2026
Top grading involves removing a leader who has grown complacent and is no longer the right match for the job and replacing them with someone who is better equipped for the new challenges in the role.

— Expert Panel®, Forbes.com, 14 Sep. 2026

Definition of complacent

Adjective

These species, along with teal and shovelers, often get categorized by self-important duck hunters as scrap ducks or bonus ducks.

— Alex Robinson, Outdoor Life, 9 Sep. 2026
Public officials attend each year to bear witness and show their respects, not deliver self-important speeches.

— Ken Frydman, New York Daily News, 7 Sep. 2026