as in self-exploration
the act or process of gaining knowledge or understanding of your abilities, character, and feelings
She was on a voyage of self-discovery.
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Recent Examples of self-discovery
Trading boardrooms for burners and office politics for high-pressure kitchens, Kathleen embarks on a funny, heartfelt journey of self-discovery, the logline reads.
—
Max Goldbart, Deadline, 19 Dec. 2025
Outside sits down with Smith to talk about how filming the show pushed him to reckon with self-discovery and facing fear.
—Abigail Wise, Outside, 11 Dec. 2025
The filmmaker who spent half a decade exploring friendship, loyalty and self-discovery seems to have absorbed those lessons deeply.
—Clayton Davis, Variety, 5 Dec. 2025
In the show, Belly has a tradition of classic movie nights with the moms that is established early on, and film references are deliberately integrated into Belly’s journey of self-discovery.
—Lexy Perez, HollywoodReporter, 24 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for self-discovery
Max Goldbart, Deadline, 19 Dec. 2025
Outside sits down with Smith to talk about how filming the show pushed him to reckon with self-discovery and facing fear.
—Abigail Wise, Outside, 11 Dec. 2025
The filmmaker who spent half a decade exploring friendship, loyalty and self-discovery seems to have absorbed those lessons deeply.
—Clayton Davis, Variety, 5 Dec. 2025
In the show, Belly has a tradition of classic movie nights with the moms that is established early on, and film references are deliberately integrated into Belly’s journey of self-discovery.
—Lexy Perez, HollywoodReporter, 24 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for self-discovery
Recent Examples of Synonyms for self-discovery
- self-exploration
- self-realization
- self-actualization
- introspection
- meditation
- self-fulfillment
- soul-searching
- self-reflection
Noun
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This rigorous self-exploration continued past the point that his disease cost him control of his hands.—
Helen Shaw,
New Yorker,
26 Nov. 2025
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Many of his clients are women, often in their 30s to 60s, seeking meaningful self-exploration.—
Matthew Kayser,
USA Today,
3 Nov. 2025
Noun
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Taking the main character’s famous journey of self-realization every night.—
Kansas City Star,
Kansas City Star,
21 Dec. 2025
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Although that self-realization is timeless, Roder cannily positions it to speak to contemporary times.—
Stephen Saito,
Variety,
23 Nov. 2025
Noun
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Stephanie Ahn 1 hour 59 minutes Bedford Park, Stephanie Ahn’s poignant directorial debut, follows Audrey on her path toward something like self-actualization, sparked by a chance encounter with a similarly lonely soul.—
Angie Han,
HollywoodReporter,
24 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Niazi appears uninterested in asserting her voice on the page, a lack of literary care that seems connected to her tendency—odd in a memoir—to nudge away from introspection.—
Lily Meyer,
The Atlantic,
29 Jan. 2026
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The effect demands a more active degree of introspection than the average documentary, and Marczak’s unwavering commitment to that endurance test approach has a powerful way of messing with viewer expectations.—
David Ehrlich,
IndieWire,
26 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Studies have shown that meditation can help lower blood pressure, boost immunity, improve sleep, and slow memory loss.—
Kris Slugg,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
27 Jan. 2026
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People come on silent retreat for a week or two at a time and spend most of their days sitting in the Zendo—the meditation hall—facing a wall or tracing walking meditations on the gravel paths that meander through Upaya’s gardens.—
Michael Pollan,
The Atlantic,
26 Jan. 2026
Noun
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But this is a Norman Lear comedy after all (his last before passing in late 2023) — so by the end of the first episode, the hilarious sitcom has revealed its true interest in acceptance, forgiveness, and self-fulfillment.—
Michael Cuby,
Them.,
17 Nov. 2025
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And increasingly, women are choosing solitude and self-fulfillment over unsatisfying relationships.—
Melissa Fleur Afshar,
MSNBC Newsweek,
7 Oct. 2025
Noun
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But there has also been sadness and soul-searching about the place the community has in a neighborhood well known for its Jewish roots, and in Australia’s wider society.—
Katie Silver,
NBC news,
25 Dec. 2025
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Moore has some soul-searching to do in the offseason, which has already begun for all intents and purposes.—
Austin Meek,
New York Times,
30 Nov. 2025
Noun
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This is why assessments that encourage self-reflection can be useful — not as diagnoses, but as mirrors.—
Mark Travers,
Forbes.com,
26 Jan. 2026
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Some writers with Murphy’s body of work, then, would see a show like The Beauty as an opportunity for self-reflection and self-critique, but this has never been the thing that Ryan Murphy does best.—
Daniel Fienberg,
HollywoodReporter,
21 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Self-discovery.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/self-discovery. Accessed 1 Feb. 2026.
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