n. pl. su·per·e·gos In psychoanalytic theory, the division of the unconscious that is formed through the internalization of moral standards of parents and society and that censors and restrains the rest of the psyche. [New Latin (translation of German Überich : über-, over, above + Ich, ego, a special use of ich, I, as a psychoanalytic term) : Latin super-, super- + New Latin ego, ego; see EGO.] |
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.