delusion
(redirected from delusionary)Also found in: Dictionary, Thesaurus, Medical, Legal.
delusion
delusion, false belief based upon a misinterpretation of reality. It is not, like a hallucination, a false sensory perception, or like an illusion, a distorted perception. Delusions vary in intensity, and are not uncommon among substance abusers, particularly those who use amphetamines, cocaine, and hallucinogens. They also occur frequently among individuals who have been diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease, Huntington's disease, or schizophrenia, and during the manic stage of bipolar disorder (see depression). Some common delusions include persecutory delusions, in which the individual falsely believes that others are plotting against him; delusions of thought broadcasting, where the individual believes his thoughts can be transmitted to others; delusions of thought insertion, in which the individual believes that thoughts are being implanted in his mind; and delusions of grandeur, in which the individual imagines himself an unappreciated person of great importance.
The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia™ Copyright © 2022, Columbia University Press. Licensed from Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.
delusion
[di′lüzh·ən] (psychology)
A conviction based on faulty perceptions, feelings, and thinking.
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Scientific & Technical Terms, 6E, Copyright © 2003 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
Delusion
Borkman, John Gabrielsuffers from delusions of power. [Nor. Lit.: John Gabriel Borkman]
night-club entertainer thinks she has the makings of a great film actress. [Br. Lit.: Isherwood Berlin Stories in Drabble, 498]
living with his own good and evil. [Fr. Lit.: The Fall]
felt she and Mitch were above others. [Am. Lit.: A Streetcar Named Desire]
self-styled island emperor experiences traumatic visions. [Am. Lit.: Emperor Jones]
steals jailer-father’s keys to free phony husband. [Br. Lit.: The Beggar’s Opera]
little boy, refuses to grow up; resides in Never Never Land. [Children’s Lit.: Peter Pan]
Marx’s classic metaphor for religion. [Ger. Hist.: Critique of Hegel’s “Philosophy of Right”]
hides head, thinking itself concealed. [Animal Symbolism: Brewer Dictionary, 788]
Allusions—Cultural, Literary, Biblical, and Historical: A Thematic Dictionary. Copyright 2008 The Gale Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
delusion
Psychiatry a belief held in the face of evidence to the contrary, that is resistant to all reason
Collins Discovery Encyclopedia, 1st edition © HarperCollins Publishers 2005