English · Slang Attested

delulu

In real, traceable use. Part of the curated seed collection; community review is coming.

Also seen as: delulu is the solulu

Both English Tiếng Việt

Meaning · English

Deliberately or comically delusional — holding an unrealistic belief (often about a crush, celebrity, or personal prospects), sometimes embraced ironically as self-confidence.

Nghĩa · Tiếng Việt

Có niềm tin không thực tế, thường về một người bị thích, người nổi tiếng hoặc triển vọng cá nhân

Machine-translated — suggest a fix

Literally: Clipped, reduplicated form of “delusional.”

How to use it

✓ Use it when

Self-deprecating or teasing talk online; fandom and dating contexts.

✗ Avoid it when

Formal writing; discussing actual mental-health conditions — it can trivialize them.

Where it’s used: Used Widespread English Origin Internet culture • mostly younger speakers • K-pop fandom, then TikTok

Examples

She’s fully delulu about getting front-row tickets, but honestly? Delulu is the solulu.

Editorial example (illustrative, not a corpus attestation)

Sources & notes

“Gen Z” is a usage cohort here, not a dialect: the word is time-, platform-, and community-scoped. Usage is contested — some speakers find non-ironic use dismissive of mental illness.

Equivalents & related

Near equivalent atsm Texting shortcut for “ảo tưởng sức mạnh” — delusionally overconfident about one’s own abilities. Tiếng Việt

Topics: Gen Z slang

Common questions

What does “delulu” mean?

Deliberately or comically delusional — holding an unrealistic belief (often about a crush, celebrity, or personal prospects), sometimes embraced ironically as self-confidence. Literally: Clipped, reduplicated form of “delusional.”

Is “delulu” formal or informal?

delulu is generally informal; connotation: playful, sometimes pejorative.

What is the closest equivalent?

“atsm” (Tiếng Việt) — near equivalent.