tic

[ tik ]
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noun
  1. Pathology.

    • a sudden, spasmodic, painless, involuntary muscular contraction, as of the face.

  2. a persistent or recurrent behavioral trait; personal quirk: her distinctive verbal tics.

Origin of tic

1
First recorded in 1790–1800; from French (of expressive origin)

Words that may be confused with tic

Other definitions for -tic (2 of 2)

-tic

  1. a suffix, equivalent in meaning to -ic, occurring in adjectives of Greek origin (analytic), used especially in the formation of adjectives from nouns with stems in -sis: hematotic; neurotic.

Origin of -tic

2
<Greek -tikos, extracted from adjectives derived with -ikos-ic from agent nouns ending in -tēs;cf. hieratic

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How to use tic in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for tic

tic

/ (tɪk) /


nounpathol
  1. spasmodic twitching of a particular group of muscles

Origin of tic

1
C19: from French, of uncertain origin; compare Italian ticche

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