conceited
kun-SEE-tid
/kənˈsiː.tɪd/
Excessively proud of oneself, especially regarding personal appearance or talents; vain.
Focuses heavily on individual vanity, physical self-admiration, and narcissistic pride.
The story behind the word. Originally related to 'conceit', meaning an idea or thought conceived in the mind. Over time, having too many clever thoughts about one's own greatness twisted the word into meaning self-infatuated.
Word relationships
- vain: Vain focuses primarily on superficial obsession with physical appearance or status, whereas conceited covers general inflated self-worth.
- narcissistic: Narcissistic implies a clinical or deep psychological inability to care about anyone else, whereas conceited is a common personality trait.
- self-effacing: Self-effacing means intentionally keeping oneself in the background and minimizing personal achievements.
Commonly confused with
- conscious: Conscious means aware or awake; conceited means excessively vain.
Word family
- conceit (noun): Excessive pride in oneself, or an elaborate poetic metaphor.
- conceitedly (adverb): In a conceited manner.
Collocations
- conceited person
- conceited smile
- painfully conceited
- vain and conceited
Idioms & expressions
- full of oneself
- in love with oneself
Example sentences
- "He was so conceited that he could not walk past a glass window without checking his reflected hair." Social observation
- "I have never seen such a conceited, disagreeable man in my life; he thought himself far too good for any company present." Classic novel description
Memory hook
ConCEITED people are completely CONvinced they are a masterPIECE. In love with your own image.
When not to use
Do not use for official institutional power trips or legal overreach; it describes personal self-infatuation.
Fun facts
- In Elizabethan poetry, a 'conceit' was an amazingly clever, extended metaphor—such as comparing two lovers' souls to the legs of a drawing compass.
Related words
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