SELF-RIGHTEOUS Synonyms: 75 Similar and Opposite Words

self-righteous

adjective

Definition of self-righteous

as in pious

disapproving having or showing a strong belief that your own actions, opinions, etc., are right and other people's are wrong a self-righteous tone It's OK to criticize, but don't get self-righteous about it.

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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-righteous Democrats who want to be self-righteous about their MAGA relatives, or sit back in their plush armchairs and diagnose Biden as being senile and blame his aides for hiding it, need to wake up. — Chicago Tribune, 15 May 2026 There is nothing worse than a self-righteous Big J journalist. — Zach Dean Outkick, FOXNews.com, 29 Apr. 2026 This admission is met with varying levels of shock and dismay from her three companions, ranging from nervous equivocation from her fiancé to self-righteous anger from Rachel. — Megan McCluskey, Time, 3 Apr. 2026 The only certainty in these films is that the self-righteous Optimus Prime will always preach some long-winded, sleep-inducing monologue at the end of the movie before a radio-friendly Linkin Park or Imagine Dragons song blares over the credits. — Sergio Pereira, Space.com, 11 Mar. 2026 See All Example Sentences for self-righteous

Recent Examples of Synonyms for self-righteous

Adjective

Preachers and patricians constantly warned that, if allowed to live unchecked in the city, Jews would ‘infect’ the Christian faithful, poisoning the minds of the pious and stealing souls away from salvation.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 8 Sep. 2026
Romania is one of the most pious countries in the European Union, with around 85% of the population identifying as religious.

— ABC News, ABC News, 3 Sep. 2026

Definition of pious

Adjective

The thing is, McEnany, co-creator Tim Mason, and a team of executive producers that included Lilly Wachowski as well as Sweeney immediately subvert any expectation of a sanctimonious or self-serious exploration of identity.

— Judy Berman, Time, 11 Aug. 2026
This, rather than sanctimonious display, is what should motivate Christians.

— The New Yorker, New Yorker, 10 Aug. 2026

Definition of sanctimonious

Adjective

Davis said that witnesses were dishonest about his character throughout the trial, including FBI agents and police officers who testified for the prosecution.

— Daniel Kreps, Rolling Stone, 5 Sep. 2026
Jacobs is perhaps best known for her role as the environmental activist with an edge, Britta Perry, on Community (2009-2015) and the dishonest love addict Mickey Dobbs on Love (2016-2018).

— Skyler Trepel, PEOPLE, 3 Sep. 2026

Definition of dishonest

Adjective

Navy excels at untangling human emotions and picking through them without being didactic or moralistic.

— Dash Lewis, Pitchfork, 10 June 2026
Last year, a YouTube channel called Akhbar Enfejari (Explosive News) began posting a variety of digital content with a political and moralistic bent.

— Kyle Chayka, New Yorker, 2 Apr. 2026

Definition of moralistic

Adjective

Gasper, who turns 31 next month, played for a month in the tense environment of the Dominican Winter League, then was summoned by Team Italy for the World Baseball Classic after former Red Sox catcher Kyle Teel suffered a strained right hamstring.

— Ken Rosenthal, New York Times, 8 Sep. 2026
Fielder said the relationship grew strained as Evans tried to exert greater control over the project.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 7 Sep. 2026

Definition of strained

Adjective

On a superficial level, his plays, built around the emotional lives of his characters, can come off as a throwback to traditional realism.

— Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 9 Sep. 2026
Considered from one angle, the movie is superficial and conventional, zipping heedlessly between the characters without fretting about point of view, creating scenes that don’t so much illuminate characters as simply push the story along.

— Richard Brody, New Yorker, 9 Sep. 2026

Definition of superficial

Adjective

There is something deeply hypocritical about discovering and using the language of women’s liberation only when your own status, reputation, or income is at stake.

— Laura Jung, Vogue, 25 Aug. 2026
That some people in these industries, including those who are well paid, would look at our economy and seek out other ways of doing things is neither hypocritical nor surprising.

— Tyler Austin Harper, The Atlantic, 22 Aug. 2026