mythomania

A patient describes their mythomania to a therapist.

Definition

1. Noun:
   • Pathological lying: "mythomania" is a psychological condition characterized by an uncontrollable or habitual tendency to exaggerate or tell lies, often without clear personal gain. It is considered a form of mental disorder involving a compulsion to fabricate stories or facts.

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • Her constant fabrications were diagnosed as a case of mythomania. (The condition of pathological lying was identified as the cause of her repeated falsehoods.)
  • The politician's mythomania made it difficult to trust any of his public statements. (His compulsive lying undermined his credibility.)
  • Mythomania is sometimes associated with certain personality disorders. (The condition is linked to other mental health issues.)

Advanced Usage

• "to suffer from mythomania": to experience the condition of pathological lying.

  • The patient was found to suffer from mythomania, which explained his elaborate tales. (The person had a diagnosed compulsion to lie.)

• "a case of mythomania": an instance or diagnosis of this condition.

  • The court psychologist described the defendant's behavior as a clear case of mythomania. (The behavior was identified as pathological lying.)

Variants and Related Words

• Mythomaniac (noun/adj): a person affected by mythomania; relating to or characteristic of mythomania.

  • He was a known mythomaniac who could not stop inventing stories. (A person with a compulsion to lie.)
  • Her mythomaniac tendencies were evident in her interviews. (Tendencies related to pathological lying.)

• Mythomaniacal (adj): of or relating to mythomania.

  • The mythomaniacal behavior disrupted the investigation. (The lying behavior caused problems.)

Synonyms

• Pseudologia fantastica: a medical term for pathological lying, often involving elaborate and fantastical falsehoods.
• Pathological lying: the general term for compulsive or habitual dishonesty without clear motive.

Phrasal Verbs

• (No common phrasal verbs directly associated with "mythomania.")

Related Idioms

• Tall tale: an exaggerated or improbable story, often told by someone with mythomania.

  • He told a tall tale about his adventures that no one believed. (An exaggerated story characteristic of mythomania.)

• Cry wolf: to raise a false alarm or exaggerate a situation, similar to the behavior in mythomania.

  • After years of mythomania, no one listened when he truly needed help. (His past lies made people ignore his genuine needs.)