1
as in self-indulgent
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2
as in independent
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of self-directed
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
But what if building a meaningful and self-directed life in the community really was possible, if people were given the right support?
—Adrienne Lapidos, The Conversation, 18 Mar. 2026
Trade The Pool aims to help people become more financially capable and self-directed.
—Matthew Kayser, USA Today, 5 Jan. 2026
The group is entirely self-directed, and participants are encouraged to bring their own tools and materials.
—Nollyanne Delacruz, Mercury News, 30 Dec. 2025
This could represent displacement or self-directed behaviors, and felines might use it as a social cue to elicit attention and interaction.
—Liz O'Connell, MSNBC Newsweek, 4 Dec. 2025
People become more self-directed, propelling their own self-awareness and taking ownership of doing what’s right.
—Glenn Llopis, Forbes.com, 13 Sep. 2025
On Mondays, those students will have schoolwork to complete, but that work will be self-directed.
—Cameron Knight, USA TODAY, 21 Mar. 2023
The video, which Swift wrote and self-directed, features a two-minute comedy sketch about her own funeral.
—Stephanie Kaloi, Peoplemag, 17 Mar. 2023
Angela Velasquez, Footwear News, 3 Apr. 2026
But what if building a meaningful and self-directed life in the community really was possible, if people were given the right support?
—Adrienne Lapidos, The Conversation, 18 Mar. 2026
Trade The Pool aims to help people become more financially capable and self-directed.
—Matthew Kayser, USA Today, 5 Jan. 2026
The group is entirely self-directed, and participants are encouraged to bring their own tools and materials.
—Nollyanne Delacruz, Mercury News, 30 Dec. 2025
This could represent displacement or self-directed behaviors, and felines might use it as a social cue to elicit attention and interaction.
—Liz O'Connell, MSNBC Newsweek, 4 Dec. 2025
People become more self-directed, propelling their own self-awareness and taking ownership of doing what’s right.
—Glenn Llopis, Forbes.com, 13 Sep. 2025
On Mondays, those students will have schoolwork to complete, but that work will be self-directed.
—Cameron Knight, USA TODAY, 21 Mar. 2023
The video, which Swift wrote and self-directed, features a two-minute comedy sketch about her own funeral.
—Stephanie Kaloi, Peoplemag, 17 Mar. 2023
Recent Examples of Synonyms for self-directed
Adjective
-
Many other traditionalists have made a version of Scruton’s critique, insisting that contemporary art reflects self-indulgent, relativistic, and impious tendencies.—
Luis Parrales,
The Atlantic,
28 Apr. 2026
-
At this point, Iran is looking less like a rival to the average Westerner, and more like an ally of the America First anti-globalist movement, successfully dismantling the illusion that exorbitant and self-indulgent Western foreign policy serves anything more than outdated narratives.—
Rachel Marsden,
Hartford Courant,
17 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
The following year, the City Council called for an independent commission to advise on overhauling the city’s criminal-justice system; it was chaired by Jonathan Lippman, a former chief judge of the New York Court of Appeals, and Richards became a member.—
Molly Fischer,
New Yorker,
11 May 2026
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Luckily these pests can be controlled with a natural spray of spinosad found in Bonide, Fertilome and Southern Ag brands of insecticides usually offered for caterpillar control at independent garden centers.—
Tom MacCubbin,
The Orlando Sentinel,
10 May 2026
Adjective
-
Securing a high-suction hybrid with a fully self-sufficient dock usually requires a thousand-dollar budget, but this Walmart deal brings elite automation into the midrange bracket.—
Juhi Wadia,
PC Magazine,
6 May 2026
-
Lilacs are relatively self-sufficient yet require some care and attention to maintain their vigor.—
Emily Leahy,
Hartford Courant,
3 May 2026
Adjective
-
One is inner-directed, determined to build self-esteem.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
22 Feb. 2023
Adjective
-
Modern vehicles do have more sensitive electronics, and following manufacturer-specific procedures is always the safest approach.—
Hartford Courant,
Hartford Courant,
12 May 2026
-
Professors and departments are urged to make these both general and specific.—
Jay Caspian Kang,
New Yorker,
12 May 2026
Adjective
-
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
-
The Pitt definitely feels like the type of workplace where conceited doctors-in-training are pretty much guaranteed to quickly get knocked down a peg.—
Megan McCluskey,
Time,
8 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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She’s been warning us since 1818 that vainglorious innovators will destroy the earth.—
Amy Nicholson,
Los Angeles Times,
10 Mar. 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
Adjective
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Supporters of the president's party often become more complacent after a presidential election, given their preferred party is running things.—
Domenico Montanaro,
NPR,
9 May 2026
-
The denim industry’s use of pumice stone is one example of this complacent mindset.—
Angela Velasquez,
Footwear News,
6 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Self-directed.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/self-directed. Accessed 12 May. 2026.
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