delusion

Etymology

From Latin dēlūsiō.

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /dɪˈl(j)uːʒ(ə)n/, /dɪˈl(j)uːzjən/
• Rhymes: -uːʒən

• Audio (UK):

  (file)

Noun

delusion (countable and uncountable, plural delusions)

1. A false belief that is resistant to confrontation with actual facts.
2. The state of being deluded or misled, or process of deluding somebody.

   It is far better to grasp the universe as it really is than to persist in delusion, however satisfying and reassuring.

3. That which is falsely or delusively believed or propagated; false belief; error in belief.
   • 1960, William L. Shirer, The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich: A History of Nazi Germany, New York: Simon & Schuster, →ISBN, LCCN 81101072, page 835:

     Hess, always a muddled man though not so doltish as Rosenberg, flew on his own to Britain under the delusion that he could arrange a peace settlement.

   • 2007 May 24, Alessandra Stanley, “A Rose-Colored Reality Where Everyone Wins”, in The New York Times‎:

     “Project Greenlight,” however, bore down on the soft underbelly of the movie business, focusing on the delusions and colossal blunders of first-time directors, seemingly selected as much for their unlovability as their talent.

4. A fixed, false belief, that will not change, despite evidence to the contrary.

Further reading

• “delusion”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.

Anagrams

• insouled, unsoiled