Oedipus complex
/ˈidəpəs ˈkɒmplɛks/
Oedipus complex noun: in Freudian theory, the complex of emotions aroused in a child by an unconscious sexual desire for the parent of the opposite sex.
Noun
Oedipus complex (plural Oedipus complexes)
- In Freudian theory, the complex of emotions aroused in a child by an unconscious sexual desire for the parent of the opposite sex.
- He never palliated his villainy, never helped old ladies across the street to show that he was a sweet kid au fond or prated about his Oedipus complex like the Percy boys who portray heavies today.1957, S[idney] J[oseph] Perelman, “Cloudland Revisited: Vintage Swine”, in The Road to Miltown: Or, Under the Spreading Atrophy (A Touchstone Book), 1st Touchstone paperback edition, New York, N.Y....
Forms of Oedipus complex
| plural | Oedipus complexes |
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Origin of Oedipus complex
Named after Oedipus in Greek mythology, who unwittingly killed his father and married his mother.
Words formed from Oedipus complex
Questions about Oedipus complex
- What does Oedipus complex mean?
- Oedipus complex means in Freudian theory, the complex of emotions aroused in a child by an unconscious sexual desire for the parent of the opposite sex.
- What part of speech is Oedipus complex?
- Oedipus complex is a noun.
- How do you pronounce Oedipus complex?
- Oedipus complex is pronounced /ˈidəpəs ˈkɒmplɛks/.
- What is the plural of Oedipus complex?
- The plural of Oedipus complex is Oedipus complexes.
Words near Oedipus complex in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: Oedipus complex (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
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Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: LL-Q1860 (eng)-Persent101-Oedipus complex.wav.
Cite this entry: “Oedipus complex.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/oedipus_complex. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.