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Glite Dictionary
💬 Chatty or informal 🧠 False memory
confabulatory

confabulatory

9.9
Saying things you do not remember correctly, often because of memory problems
  • adjective
  • /kənˈfæbjʊlətɔri/
  • Specialized
translation icon : confabulatorio
  • The neurologist noted the patient's confabulatory responses during the memory test.

Examples

  • Her confabulatory explanations made it difficult to determine what she actually remembered.

  • In some cases of dementia, confabulatory behavior can be a common symptom.

  • The patient's confabulatory stories were fascinating to the psychologist.

  • Why are his memories so confabulatory?

  • The neurologist noted the patient's confabulatory responses during the memory test.

  • Her confabulatory explanations made it hard to determine the accuracy of her memories.

  • In some cases of dementia, confabulatory behavior can lead to misunderstandings about the past.

Synonyms

illusionary
vsconfabulatory
2 7.7

Appearing real but trying to trick your mind

is instead about unintentional false memories rather than deliberate deception
delusionary
vsconfabulatory
1 8.0

Giving a false idea that something is true

is about unintentionally creating false memories or stories
delusory
vsconfabulatory
1 9.1

Giving a false idea that makes people believe something untrue

is about false memories formed without intent to mislead

Antonyms

truthful
121 1.3

Always saying what really happened and not lying

factual
112 3.4

Based on real facts and not on opinions or imagination

Surface Forms

confabulatory positive

Morphology

confabulatory = confabulate (transparent) = confabulate + atory

Formed from 'confabulate' (or associated noun 'confabulation') with a standard adjectival suffix; it straightforwardly indicates relation to confabulation in a clinical sense.

Etymology

Confabulatory comes from Latin con- 'together' and fabula 'story', the same root as fable, and in medicine 'confabulation' means making up stories to fill memory gaps without meaning to deceive. So a confabulatory response is when someone unintentionally invents details or false memories.