hedonist
Americannoun
adjective
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of hedonist
Explanation
Your parents might want to visit the museum while you want to hike in the forest, but your brother, the hedonist, just wants to lounge by the hotel pool and eat cake. A hedonist values sensual pleasure above all else. Hedonist comes from the Greek word hedone "pleasure" and is related to hedys, which means "sweet." Although this noun did not make its first appearance until 1822, the word was created as a reference to an ancient Greek philosophical system known as the Cyrenaic school. The Cyrenaics taught that pleasure — particularly physical pleasure — is the greatest good. If you need some examples of modern day hedonists, think the many celebrities today who are only famous for going to parties.
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Honorable mention: The Accidental Hedonist, written with flair by one Kate Hopkins.
From Time Magazine Archive
He was no longer a trifler and a Hedonist.
From The Early Poems of Alfred Lord Tennyson by Collins, John Churton
Had he been the mere Hedonist he could never have done the work he did.
From Robert Louis Stevenson: a record, an estimate, and a memorial by Japp, Alexander H. (Alexander Hay)
A few long-hoarded pennies in his hand Behold him stand; A kilted Hedonist, perplexed and sad.
From Trees and Other Poems by Kilmer, Joyce
Mr. Ex-Presidents and fellow-members of this justly-celebrated Hedonist Society," he began, and every word he said could be heard plainly, "we are here to-night in obedience to custom and in pursuit of pleasure.
From Godfrey Marten, Undergraduate by Turley, Charles
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
