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Sep 12, 2017
This week’s theme
There’s a word for it

This week’s words
whataboutery
mythomania
tenesmus
xenophobia
kayfabe

Pinocchio in Pinocchio Park, Collodi, Italy
Pinocchio Park, Collodi, Italy
Photo: Adrian Michael/Wikimedia
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A.Word.A.Day
with Anu Garg

mythomania

PRONUNCIATION:
(mith-uh-MAY-nee-uh)

MEANING:
noun: An abnormal tendency to exaggerate or lie.

ETYMOLOGY:
From Greek mythos (myth) + -mania (excessive enthusiasm or craze). Earliest documented use: 1909.

USAGE:
“I humoured him by listening to his stories about all the grandchildren he probably didn’t have. His mythomania, which both terrified and exasperated me, somehow brought us together.”
Marie-Renee Lavoie; Mister Roger and Me; Anansi; 2012.

See more usage examples of mythomania in Vocabulary.com’s dictionary.

A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:
Whenever 'A' attempts by law to impose his moral standards upon 'B', 'A' is most likely a scoundrel. -H.L. Mencken, writer, editor, and critic (12 Sep 1880-1956)

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