disillusion

1 of 2

noun

dis·​il·​lu·​sion ˌdis-ə-ˈlü-zhən 

: the condition of being disenchanted : the condition of being dissatisfied or defeated in expectation or hope

suffered romantic disillusions

disillusion

2 of 2

verb

disillusioned; disillusioning ˌdis-ə-ˈlü-zhə-niŋ 

transitive verb

: to free from illusion

also : to cause to lose naive faith and trust

The job disillusioned her about working in retail.

disillusionment

ˌdis-ə-ˈlü-zhən-mənt 

noun

Synonyms

Verb

• disabuse
• disenchant
• undeceive

Examples of disillusion in a Sentence

Verb

Working at that store for six months was enough to disillusion me about retail work.

we were disillusioned when we saw how the movie star acted in real life

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

For more than a century, the country has oscillated in this way, from periods of restraint, retrenchment, indifference, and disillusion to periods of almost panicked global engagement and interventionism. —Robert Kagan, Foreign Affairs, 20 Dec. 2022

But Washington’s approach to world affairs in recent years, not least in the Middle East, has fed disillusion with American leadership among those countries. —Ned Temko, The Christian Science Monitor, 31 Oct. 2024

Verb

At the time, many white nationalists in the 1970s and 1980s were disillusioned by the U.S. failure to win the Vietnam War and wanted to exact a kind of revenge. —Olivia B. Waxman, TIME, 6 Dec. 2024

Luckily, there are several strategies available to help businesses avoid being disillusioned by their AI investments. —Patrick (pj) Jean, Forbes, 2 Dec. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1591, in the meaning defined above

Verb

1855, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

disillusion

verb

dis·​il·​lu·​sion

ˌdis-ə-ˈlü-zhən

disillusioned; disillusioning

-ˈlüzh-(ə-)niŋ

: to free from mistaken beliefs or foolish hopes

a loss that disillusioned the fans

disillusionment

-ˈlü-zhən-mənt

noun