inner-directed

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of inner-directed One is inner-directed, determined to build self-esteem. Los Angeles Times, 22 Feb. 2023
Recent Examples of Synonyms for inner-directed
Adjective
  • Such an obvious way to exhibit his egotistical personality.
    Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 22 June 2025
  • Responding to questions from defense lawyer Teny Geragos, Jane agreed that Combs became more apologetic and attentive, less egotistical and cold.
    NBC News, NBC news, 13 June 2025
Adjective
  • Bang is perfect for this kind of role, playing an imposing figure who can be both aloof and egocentric, and whose grand stature diminishes as the film progresses.
    Jordan Mintzer, HollywoodReporter, 16 May 2025
  • Impulsive, egocentric, and mendacious, Trump has, in the same span, set fire to the integrity of his office.
    David Remnick, New Yorker, 27 Apr. 2025
Adjective
  • The breakfast photo is the ur-text of the narcissistic internet, a bit of content that no one else is necessarily interested in but which the poster feels the need, or even the responsibility, to make public for anyone online to see.
    Kyle Chayka, New Yorker, 9 July 2025
  • But between a narcissistic president (Meryl Streep), a sleazy administration, and the country's la-la-land media machine, their world-ending warning is met with yawns and collective dismissal.
    EW Staff Published, EW.com, 3 July 2025
Adjective
  • Her larger-than-life ego and past as a shaman make Player 044 come off as arrogant and selfish, getting under just about everyone's skin.
    EW.com, EW.com, 4 July 2025
  • While the Great Lakes tunnel has been pitched as a safer option than leaving Line 5 alone without secondary containment, Gravelle said that's a narrow and selfish view.
    Caitlin Looby, jsonline.com, 3 July 2025
Adjective
  • The guitar, like golf, invites solipsistic dissolution masquerading as self-actualization.
    Nick Paumgarten, New Yorker, 19 May 2025
  • In fact, that country’s name has become shorthand for a certain solipsistic dread in American popular culture.
    Paul A. Thompson, Pitchfork, 17 Apr. 2025
Adjective
  • Billy and Peter systematically built a game-winning team off of statistics and budget, rather than investing the entire franchise's finances into players who were flashy, self-centered, or individually successful.
    Derek Scancarelli, EW.com, 27 June 2025
  • Compiled from Candace Bushnell’s column of the same name from The New York Observer, the book is a dark and bizarre look at dating in 1990s New York, where men are pathologically childish, cruel, and self-centered, and women are domineering, striving, and manipulative.
    Alice Bolin June 23, Literary Hub, 23 June 2025
Adjective
  • Brilliant and brave, the poet and soldier was also entirely self-absorbed, turning the Adriatic city into his own personal manuscript.
    Ed Simon June 23, Literary Hub, 23 June 2025
  • Is Huda self-absorbed, overdramatic, extremely volatile, overly obsessed with traditional gender roles, and impossible to please?
    Shannon Keating, Vulture, 19 June 2025
Adjective
  • Not just for this reason, but also due to the fact she’s been so self-involved the past year.
    Erin Clack, People.com, 2 Feb. 2025
  • A little self-involved, but the check clears either way.
    Bethy Squires, Vulture, 16 Aug. 2024

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Cite this Entry

“Inner-directed.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/inner-directed. Accessed 18 Jul. 2025.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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