split personality
9
8.0
- noun
- /splɪt ˌpɜrnəˈsɒnəlɪti/
- Specialized
:
personalidad dividida
- - You really think I have split personality?
Schizophrenia doesn't mean a split personality, although the name does come from the Greek and Latin meaning split mind.
- Schizophrenia doesn't mean a split personality, although the name does come from the Greek and Latin meaning split mind.
Examples
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One key source of turmoil for Finley is her split personality.
Blog text (7) -
The psychologist explained that a split personality can lead to confusion in daily life, as one identity may not remember what the other did.
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Paul has some sort of split personality.
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- Could he have like, a split personality?
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Are you saying she has a split personality?
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What about a split personality?
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Like a split personality or something?
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Bell's gone a little crazy over the years, and now has this split personality.
Blog text (24) -
So he's got a split personality, has he?
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He certainly seems to have a split personality.
Synonyms
17
8.7
A rare mental illness in which one person has two or more different identities that act separately
How Distinct
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning is directly derivable from 'split' (to divide) + 'personality' (set of behavioral/mental traits): a personality that is divided into distinct parts or identities. This compositional pattern is straightforward and cross-linguistically common, so a B1 learner who knows both words can infer the basic sense even if they may not know the clinical label.
Etymology
Split personality creates a simple picture: the mind is split into two or more different personalities, as if two people lived in one body. So it is used to mean someone has 'two or more separate identities' and may behave like different people at different times.