The word gaslighting comes from the 1944 Ingrid Bergman film
| The word gaslighting comes from the 1944 Ingrid Bergman film | |
|---|---|
| MISLEADING | |
| "The term "gaslighting" comes from the 1944 Hollywood film Gaslight, starring Ingrid Bergman." | |
| Domain | Language, Folklore & Urban Legends |
| Tactic | False Context |
| Era | Historical |
| First seen | 1944 |
| Origin | Popular explanations of the word, especially after it became widely used in the 2010s |
| Last reviewed | 2026-10-30 |
| Further reading: books on Language, Folklore & Urban Legends | |
"Gaslighting" means manipulating someone into doubting their own memory, perception or sanity. The word is usually traced to the 1944 MGM film Gaslight, in which a husband, played by Charles Boyer, slowly convinces his wife, played by Ingrid Bergman, that she is going mad. Among other tricks, he dims the gas lights in their London house and insists she is imagining it.
The film made the story famous, but it was the third version. The story began as a play.
What the evidence shows
- The play. British playwright Patrick Hamilton wrote Gas Light, a thriller set in 1880s London, first staged in 1938. It ran on Broadway from 1941 as Angel Street.
- The first film. A British film adaptation directed by Thorold Dickinson was released in 1940. When MGM made its version, it reportedly tried to suppress the earlier film.
- The 1944 film. George Cukor's MGM film won Ingrid Bergman the Academy Award for Best Actress and fixed the story in popular memory.
- Becoming a verb. "Gaslight" was used as a verb for this kind of manipulation by the 1960s, including in a 1969 article in The Lancet. Its use exploded in the 2010s, and Merriam-Webster named it its word of the year for 2022.
Why it matters
The origin story is close to right, which is why it spreads. The full history shows the idea came from a playwright, then traveled through two films into psychology and politics.
Gaslighting This page explains the origin of the word gaslighting itself. The word comes from Patrick Hamilton's 1938 play Gas Light and the 1944 film Gaslight, in which a husband dims the gas lamps and insists his wife is imagining it. Where the word comes from · More gaslighting cases
Sources
- Merriam-Webster, "Word of the Year 2022: Gaslighting."
- British Film Institute, Gaslight (1940), film record.
- Oxford English Dictionary, entry for "gaslight, v."