delulu
/dih-LOO-loo/adjective · noun
Meaning
Delulu describes a belief, expectation or person that is knowingly detached from reality. Online, it is usually playful and self-aware: someone admits the odds are bad, then chooses to believe anyway.
- 1. Holding an unrealistic belief about a relationship, opportunity or future event.
- 2. A person who behaves as if an improbable outcome is certain.
- 3. Bold, almost irrational confidence used as a joke or motivational attitude.
Examples
“I sent one application and already planned my first day — let me be delulu.”
“He thinks that concert wave was meant only for him. That's delulu.”
“A little delulu confidence got her to pitch the idea anyway.”
Origin and spread
A playful shortening of “delusional.” The term circulated in English-speaking K-pop fandom spaces around 2013–2014, where fans used it for exaggerated beliefs about closeness to an idol. It later moved into wider social-media speech and broadened beyond fandom and romance.
How to use it
Best used for obvious exaggeration, self-mockery or light teasing. Avoid applying it to someone experiencing an actual mental-health crisis; the casual joke can become dismissive in that context.