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Glite Dictionary
to navel-gaze

to navel-gaze

1 9.3
To spend too much time thinking only about yourself and not acting or thinking about others
  • verb
  • /ˈneɪvəlˌɡeɪz/
  • Informal
translation icon : mirarse el ombligo
  • Rather than navel-gaze endlessly, we should focus on finding solutions to our challenges.

Examples

  • Okay, now that we've navel-gazed about what causes conflict, what are we going to do about it?

    Blog text (16)

  • You can do amazing things with all these gifts, or you can squander them moaning and navel-gazing.

    Blog text (17)

  • A part of the GOP election schtick is to get non-Movement Conservatives to navel-gaze, get anxiety-ridden, or outright fall victim to despair.

    Blog text (2)

  • The pounding the GOP took on election night—losing a shot at the White House, Senate seats, and House districts—could push Republicans into some serious navel-gazing as the party looks to figure out its future.

    Blog text (17)

  • Instead of navel-gazing about his problems, he decided to take action and help others.

  • She spent so much time navel-gazing that she neglected her friends and responsibilities.

Synonyms

to obsess about
vsto navel-gaze
26 6.0

Think too much about something so you feel unhappy

focuses specifically on personal problems and avoids action or others' views

Antonyms

to take action
161 2.8

To do something to solve a problem or make a change

How Self-Absorbed

to obsess
304 5.5
to navel-gaze
  • Informal
1 9.3
to brood
28 6.1
to ruminate
10 7.6

Surface Forms

navel-gaze infinitive
navel-gazed past
navel-gazed past participle
navel-gazing present participle
navel-gazes third person singular

Morphology

navel-gaze = navel + gaze (semi-transparent) = navel + gaze

The components 'navel' + 'gaze' are literal and suggest 'look at one's navel', but the idiomatic meaning 'excessive self-absorption' requires knowledge of the metaphor and may not be directly inferable for all learners.

Etymology

The word navel-gaze comes from the image of staring at your own navel, which is your 'belly button', and gaze means a long 'stare'. So to navel-gaze is to spend too much time thinking about yourself and not taking action.