1
as in metaphor
an elaborate or fanciful way of expressing something
the conceit that the crowd at the outdoor rock concert was a vast sea of people waving to the beat of the music
Synonyms & Similar Words
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2
as in illusion
a conception or image created by the imagination and having no objective reality
his dream of swimming in the Olympics is nothing more than a conceit
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in vanity
an often unjustified feeling of being pleased with oneself or with one's situation or achievements
even though her novels are enormously popular, the writer is more prone to humility than to conceit
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in to imagine
to form a mental picture of
after a huge meal like that, I cannot conceit eating another thing for the rest of the day
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of conceit
Alex Barasch, New Yorker, 11 May 2026
Visually striking, and a clever way to represent the conceit of the book.
—Emily Temple, Literary Hub, 30 Apr. 2026
Or maybe a poem that uses the stars as a conceit and our complicated feelings about them as a screen for other difficult emotions.
—New York Times, 21 Apr. 2026
Beef’s central conceit relies on Lee Sung Jin’s ability to stretch the initial conflict over the whole season.
—Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 16 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for conceit
Noun
The conceit also has a moral dimension.
—Alex Barasch, New Yorker, 11 May 2026
Visually striking, and a clever way to represent the conceit of the book.
—Emily Temple, Literary Hub, 30 Apr. 2026
Or maybe a poem that uses the stars as a conceit and our complicated feelings about them as a screen for other difficult emotions.
—New York Times, 21 Apr. 2026
Beef’s central conceit relies on Lee Sung Jin’s ability to stretch the initial conflict over the whole season.
—Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 16 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for conceit
Recent Examples of Synonyms for conceit
Noun
-
As industrialization advanced, the factory replaced the wheel of fortune as a metaphor for how things happen in the world.—
Jill Lepore,
New Yorker,
18 May 2026
-
Lear conceived Mary Hartman, the woman, as a metaphor for the condition of America itself.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
18 May 2026
Noun
-
While Goodman’s paradoxes and fantasies posed challenges to me as her biographer, with the advent of AI slop and ChatGPT, our courtship with illusion (and possibly delusion) is here to stay.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
13 May 2026
-
Van Dyke saw his job less as someone creating CG imagery — of which there was almost none in the sequence — than as a sort of additional set decorator, adding physical elements to sell the illusion.—
Jim Hemphill,
IndieWire,
12 May 2026
Noun
-
The dresser has a classic silhouette with minimalist details like tapered legs and oiled hardware, and the mirror doubles as a vanity.—
Shea Simmons,
PEOPLE,
17 May 2026
-
That lack of vanity becomes the greatest weapon of My Duchess.—
Scott Roxborough,
HollywoodReporter,
16 May 2026
Verb
-
Hiba imagined seeing snow for the first time and living in a cold state, such as Ohio.—
Annie Hylton,
New Yorker,
14 May 2026
-
Now imagine moving millions of items, each of them delicate, unique, priceless and old.—
Phaedra Trethan,
USA Today,
13 May 2026
Noun
-
Hong Kong — For the past three decades, China has been a nation of homeowners — supercharging the world’s second-largest economy and fulfilling the dreams of millions.—
Chris Lau,
CNN Money,
18 May 2026
-
The first dream had vanished within two weeks of his arrival.—
Tom Williams,
New York Times,
17 May 2026
Noun
-
Assayas takes a cynical and clichéd view regarding temptation and corruption, worldly rewards of security and pleasure, even ego and pride, while having nothing to say about the transformations envisioned or the values embodied in the exercise of political authority.—
Richard Brody,
New Yorker,
13 May 2026
-
To be an athlete is to prove yourself constantly, to always be risking your ego and your body.—
Jade Chang,
Los Angeles Times,
13 May 2026
Verb
-
Matsuzawa envisioned a future that would keep him in Japan — college, followed by a career.—
Andrew Greif,
NBC news,
15 May 2026
-
Her role, the one head coach Cori Close envisioned to complete a team built to win it all, centered on joy and culture.—
Ira Gorawara,
New York Times,
15 May 2026
Noun
-
Keeping track of the other, less consequential games may then only appeal to sports bettors and fantasy football players.—
Bobby Burack OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
14 May 2026
-
Projects in development span the genres of romance, drama, horror, action and fantasy.—
Naman Ramachandran,
Variety,
14 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Conceit.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/conceit. Accessed 20 May. 2026.
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