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The Economic Times
The Economic Times
National
Trending Desk

Word of the Day: Confabulate, what it means, where it came from and how to use it

The word "confabulate" has an unusual range of meanings. In everyday English, it can simply mean to talk or converse, often in a relaxed way. In psychology and medicine, however, the same word is used for a very different phenomenon: producing false or inaccurate information without deliberately trying to deceive someone. The contrast makes "confabulate" an especially interesting word to understand in context.

Pronounced "kuhn-FAB-yuh-layt", the verb is most often associated with conversation or with accounts that contain invented details. Its meaning depends heavily on how it is being used and the subject being discussed.

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