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Glite Dictionary
to forget oneself

to forget oneself

10 7.0
Act without control because of strong feelings
  • phrasal verb
translation icon : dejarse llevar
  • Because not seeing myself means I can forget myself and what I look like, and just live.
  • momentarily forgot myself
  • I sometimes forget myself
  • completely forgot myself

Examples

  • "Forgive me, Majesty, I forget myself.

    Fiction book (1993)

  • I'm 23 years old, and it's time for me to forget myself, right?

    Faces (1968)

  • And in truth, Snow White nearly forgot herself.

    Snow White (2025)

  • Or if I live... let me forget myself.

    Edward II (1991)

  • I-I forget myself in your company.

    Mary Queen of Scots (2018)

  • For a moment, she forgot herself and fell asleep.

    Fiction book (1996)

  • "Oh my dear, I'm forgetting myself.

    Fiction book (1990)

  • "To church," is what he said, and my grandmother, not expecting this reply, forgot herself altogether.

    Fiction book (1995)

  • I do not think a word I uttered during this scene could have been audible; in the next, the ballroom, I began to forget myself; in the following one, the balcony scene, I had done so, and, for aught I knew, I was Juliet...

    Academic text (2018)

  • In the excitement of the party, I completely forgot myself and danced like no one was watching.

Synonyms

to lose it
vsto forget oneself
  • Informal
289 7.5

Suddenly stop controlling your feelings and become very angry or upset

is a lack of control or unusual action from any strong emotion or excitement
to lose one's temper
vsto forget oneself
2 3.7

To suddenly become very angry and not be able to control yourself

is broader covering any lack of self control from strong emotion or excitement
to lose the run of oneself
vsto forget oneself
  • Archaic
9.9

Act in a confused or uncontrolled way because of strong emotion

is a wider lack of self control or acting unusually from strong emotion

How Self-Controlled

to keep it together
  • Informal
27 5.4
to forget oneself
10 7.0
to lose it
  • Informal
289 7.5

Surface Forms

forget oneself infinitive
forgetting oneself present participle
forgets oneself third person singular
forgot oneself past
forgotten oneself past participle

Morphology

forget + oneself

The meaning arises from a metaphorical extension of 'forget' applied to 'oneself' — forgetting one’s usual self implies losing awareness or self-control — so a learner who knows both words can plausibly infer a sense like 'lose self-control' but not the exact pragmatic nuance. Because the relation is metaphorical rather than strictly compositional and requires some pragmatic knowledge, it is partially predictable but not fully transparent to a B1 learner.

Etymology

The phrasal verb forget oneself comes from the image of someone who forgets their usual oneself for a short time. Imagine a calm person who gets so angry or excited they lose manners and act without thinking, so that's why it means 'to lose self-control' or 'to act in an uncharacteristic way'.