delusion

What it means

1. countableuncountableAn adamant belief in a falsehood despite incontestable evidence.
2. countableuncountableThe state of being deluded or misled, or process of deluding somebody.

   It is far better to grasp the universe as it really is than to persist in delusion, however satisfying and reassuring.

3. countableuncountableThat which is falsely or delusively believed or propagated; false belief; error in belief.

   Hess, always a muddled man though not so doltish as Rosenberg, flew on his own to Britain under the delusion that he could arrange a peace settlement.

   1960, William L. Shirer, The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich: A History of Nazi Germany, New York: Simon & Schuster, →ISBN, LCCN 81101072, page 835

   1 more example

   “Project Greenlight,” however, bore down on the soft underbelly of the movie business, focusing on the delusions and colossal blunders of first-time directors, seemingly selected as much for their unlovability as their talent.

   2007 May 24, Alessandra Stanley, “A Rose-Colored Reality Where Everyone Wins”, in The New York Times

In a sentence

It is far better to grasp the universe as it really is than to persist in delusion, however satisfying and reassuring.

Where it comes from

1. Latindēlūsiō
2. Latindēlūsiō
3. Englishdelusion

Borrowed from Latin dēlūsiō. (This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium. Particularly: “a direct borrowing from latin or e.g. through french?”)