1
a
: favorable opinion
especially
: excessive appreciation of one's own worth or virtue
… the landlord's conceit of his own superior knowledge … —
Adam Smith
Adam Smith
b(1)
: a result of mental activity : thought
(2)
: individual opinion
2
a
: a fanciful idea
b
: an elaborate or strained metaphor
The poem abounds in metaphysical conceits.
c
: use or presence of such conceits in poetry
d
: an organizing theme or concept
… found his conceit for the film early …—Peter Wilkinson
Peter Wilkinson… the historian's conceit that the past is forever prologue …—Leon V. Sigal
Leon V. Sigal3
: a fancy item or trifle
Conceits were fancy desserts, made either of sugar … or pastry.—Francie Owen
Francie Owen
conceited; conceiting; conceits
1
chiefly dialectal
: imagine
2
dialectal British
: to take a fancy to
3
obsolete
: conceive, understand
Synonyms
Examples of conceit in a Sentence
Noun
His conceit has earned him many enemies.
the conceit that the crowd at the outdoor rock concert was a vast sea of people waving to the beat of the music
Verb
after a huge meal like that, I cannot conceit eating another thing for the rest of the day
Recent Examples on the Web
Vikram Murthi, IndieWire, 25 Jan. 2025
Undeniably audacious in its plotting and conceit, Jacques Audiard’s musical about the wild odyssey of a transgender cartel boss in Mexico goes to places most movies wouldn’t dare, including a showstopper set during a transition surgery.
—Scott Tobias, New York Times, 23 Jan. 2025
There are a lot of ways to interpret that, but one thing that is built into the conceit of the show is that, for the innies, the choice is work or nonexistence.
—Ethan Shanfeld, Variety, 17 Jan. 2025
The film’s entire conceit revolves around Romy’s hidden desire to be dominated, which makes Babygirl feel like an elevated, more emotionally honest successor to 50 Shades of Grey.
—Fran Tirado, Them, 10 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for conceit 
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Noun
The film’s sparse, handmade 16-mm aesthetic, which visually recalls influences ranging from early German Expressionism to the work of Guy Maddin, primarily sells the film’s outlandish fantastical conceit, despite its derivative nature.
—Vikram Murthi, IndieWire, 25 Jan. 2025
Undeniably audacious in its plotting and conceit, Jacques Audiard’s musical about the wild odyssey of a transgender cartel boss in Mexico goes to places most movies wouldn’t dare, including a showstopper set during a transition surgery.
—Scott Tobias, New York Times, 23 Jan. 2025
There are a lot of ways to interpret that, but one thing that is built into the conceit of the show is that, for the innies, the choice is work or nonexistence.
—Ethan Shanfeld, Variety, 17 Jan. 2025
The film’s entire conceit revolves around Romy’s hidden desire to be dominated, which makes Babygirl feel like an elevated, more emotionally honest successor to 50 Shades of Grey.
—Fran Tirado, Them, 10 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for conceit
Dictionary Entries Near conceit
Cite this Entry
“Conceit.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/conceit. Accessed 5 Feb. 2025.
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