Narcissism
noun /ˈnɑːsɪsɪzəm/ — An excessive preoccupation with oneself and one's own image.
Definition
Excessive interest in or admiration of oneself and one's physical appearance; selfishness involving a sense of entitlement and an inability to empathise.
Beyond the definition
The most misused psychological term of the last decade. Clinical narcissism is a personality disorder. The key symptom in both is the impaired capacity for empathy — the inability to truly register that other people's inner lives are as real as your own.
Origin & history
From the Greek myth of Narcissus, who fell in love with his own reflection in a pool and wasted away gazing at it. Term coined by Havelock Ellis in 1898.
Example sentences
Illustrative sentences for learning, not verified community posts or sourced quotations.
The narcissism wasn't obvious — it revealed itself slowly, in patterns.
Some degree of narcissism is adaptive; too much destroys relationships.
She'd learned the difference between confidence and narcissism: one involves other people.
How to use it
This entry uses a noun. Follow the examples for articles and singular or plural forms; not every noun takes “a” or “an.”
Choose “Narcissism” when the meaning fits your context: Excessive interest in or admiration of oneself and one's physical appearance; selfishness involving a sense of entitlement and an inability to empathise.
Synonyms
egotism, self-absorption, vanity, self-love, egomania
Antonyms
Related words
Narcissism vs vanity
Vanity is excessive pride in one's own appearance or achievements — preoccupation with how one looks or is perceived. Narcissism is structurally deeper: it involves a pervasive pattern of grandiosity, need for admiration, and — crucially — impaired empathy, an inability to truly register that other people's inner lives are as real as your own. Vanity is a flaw; narcissism is a way of being. You can be vain and still care about others; narcissism makes genuine care structurally difficult.
Word in the Wild
Illustrative story: an imagined scene, not a documented event or interview.
She noticed it in the third year. Not the grandiosity — that had been obvious early, and she'd thought it was confidence. Not the charm — that had been what she'd fallen for.
What she noticed in the third year was smaller and more consistent: the way the world contracted, always, to his perspective. The way her experience of events was always slightly wrong — slightly off from how they'd really happened.
She didn't have the full vocabulary for it until she left. The vocabulary made her neither angrier nor more forgiving. It made what had happened legible. That was enough.
Questions about this word
What does "Narcissism" mean?
Narcissism is noun meaning: An excessive preoccupation with oneself and one's own image.. Excessive interest in or admiration of oneself and one's physical appearance; selfishness involving a sense of entitlement and an inability to empathise.
Which words express “being made to doubt your own reality”?
Narcissism — An excessive preoccupation with oneself and one's own image.
Where does the word "Narcissism" come from?
From the Greek myth of Narcissus, who fell in love with his own reflection in a pool and wasted away gazing at it. Term coined by Havelock Ellis in 1898.