conceit

[ kuhn-seet ]

/ kənˈsit /

SEE SYNONYMS FOR conceit ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

an excessively favorable opinion of one's own ability, importance, wit, etc.

something that is conceived in the mind; a thought; idea: He jotted down the conceits of his idle hours.

imagination; fancy.

a fancy; whim; fanciful notion.

an elaborate, fanciful metaphor, especially of a strained or far-fetched nature.

the use of such metaphors as a literary characteristic, especially in poetry.

a fancy, purely decorative article.

British Dialect.

favorable opinion; esteem.
personal opinion or estimation.

Obsolete. the faculty of conceiving; apprehension.

verb (used with object)

to flatter (especially oneself).

British Dialect. to take a fancy to; have a good opinion of.

Obsolete.

to imagine.
to conceive; apprehend.

Idioms for conceit

out of conceit with, displeased or dissatisfied with.

Origin of conceit

1350–1400; Middle English conceyte, conceipt, derivative of conceive by analogy with deceive, deceit and receive, receipt; compare Anglo-French conceite; see concept

SYNONYMS FOR conceit

1 self-esteem, vanity, egotism, complacency. See pride.

SEE SYNONYMS FOR conceit ON THESAURUS.COM

ANTONYMS FOR conceit

1 humility.

SEE ANTONYMS FOR conceit ON THESAURUS.COM

Words nearby conceit

concealed carry, concealed hemorrhage, concealed-carry, concealment, concede, conceit, conceited, conceivable, conceive, concelebrant, concelebrate

Example sentences from the Web for conceit

Wolf concurs that the conceit of the show seems to have everyone but the sex worker in mind.

To Catch a Sex Worker: A&E’s Awful, Exploitative Ambush Show |Samantha Allen |December 19, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
Because that conceit was straight/gay vs straight/straight, I could do a lot of overtly straight humor and it would be acceptable.

Oscars Host Neil Patrick Harris on His Best and Worst Emcee Moments (VIDEO) |Neil Patrick Harris |October 15, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
This might seem like a conceit, but the end result is both troubling and overwhelmingly powerful.

What You Missed But Shouldn’t Have In 2013 | |December 25, 2013 |DAILY BEAST
The style is stuffy, the syntax is antique, and the conceit is never really convincing.

Robin Sloan’s Book Bag: Five Science Fiction Books That Matter |Robin Sloan |September 24, 2013 |DAILY BEAST

As a means of fixing the fundamental problem of adapting Gatsby, the conceit does a serviceable job of correcting a deficit.

The Great Gatsby: Book Versus Movie |Jon Reiner |May 10, 2013 |DAILY BEAST
Oh, but how scant the utterance, and how faint, to my conceit!

Dante: "The Central Man of All the World" |John T. Slattery
Does it suggest a standard to attain to, or does it merely minister to self-love and conceit?

Sir Brook Fossbrooke, Volume I. |Charles James Lever
That was it—the youth of these two had knocked his conceit into a cocked hat.

The Drums Of Jeopardy |Harold MacGrath
Genius did not disdain the entrance, because it was not obstructed by numbers, or galled by conceit.

Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, Vol. 66, No 405, July 1849 |Various
Johnny was pleased with the conceit, and the little tern were always afterwards known as the prince and princess.

The Island Home |Richard Archer

British Dictionary definitions for conceit

conceit

/ (kənˈsiːt) /

noun

a high, often exaggerated, opinion of oneself or one's accomplishments; vanity

literary an elaborate image or far-fetched comparison, esp as used by the English Metaphysical poets

archaic

a witty expression
fancy; imagination
an idea

obsolete a small ornament

verb (tr)

Northern English dialect to like or be able to bear (something, such as food or drink)

obsolete to think or imagine

Word Origin for conceit

C14: from conceive

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Learning

conceit

noun

verb (used with object)

Idioms for conceit

Origin of conceit

SYNONYMS FOR conceit

ANTONYMS FOR conceit

Words nearby conceit

Example sentences from the Web for conceit

British Dictionary definitions for conceit

noun

verb (tr)

Word Origin for conceit

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Learning

conceit

noun

verb (used with object)

Idioms for conceit

Origin of conceit

SYNONYMS FOR conceit

ANTONYMS FOR conceit

Words nearby conceit

Words related to conceit

Example sentences from the Web for conceit

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noun

verb (tr)

Word Origin for conceit

British Dictionary definitions for conceit