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AIM The study investigated the association of narcissistic leadership, workload and emotional demands with nurses' job satisfaction and the mediational role of meaningful work. BACKGROUND Considering the strong positive relationship that meaningful work has with job satisfaction, investigating its antecedents is crucial. METHOD A group of 602 nurses participated in the study completing a self-report questionnaire. Structural equation model analysis was applied. RESULTS Narcissistic leadership showed a negative association while emotional demands showed a positive one with meaningful work. The three determinants had a negative association with job satisfaction, while meaningful work showed a positive one. The indirect relationship with job satisfaction mediated by meaningful work was negative for narcissistic leadership and positive for emotional demands. CONCLUSION The study adds to the literature mainly by the investigation of the mediational role of meaningful work in a sample of nurses. IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING MANAGEMENT Measures should promote supportive, instead of narcissistic, leadership behaviours. Moreover, nurses should be assisted in identifying emotional demands as a meaningful aspect of their work. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.