latah
or la·ta
a pattern of neurotic behavior, usually induced by a startle, first discovered in Malaya, and characterized by the compulsive imitation of the actions and words of others.
Origin of latah
1Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use latah in a sentence
For Lata, because of her age, the odds of finding an Indian husband are slim to none.
My friend Lata, 41, is a successful investment banker who has never been married.
My father spends his mornings in those lata silentia, as Virgil calls the world beyond the grave.
The Caxtons, Complete | Edward Bulwer-LyttonIs cum multa contra legem frumentariam dixisset, lege tamen lata ad frumentum cum ceteris accipiendum venit.
Selections from Viri Romae | Charles Franois L'HomondThe chief physiological antagonistics of the glutei are the quadriceps femoris and tensor fascia lata.
Lameness of the Horse | John Victor Lacroix
There is yet another tape-worm harboured by man, the Tnia lata, better known under the name of Bothriocephalus.
Animal Parasites and Messmates | P. J. Van BenedenA similar condition may implicate the fascia lata of the thigh, or the calf muscles and their aponeuroses—crural fibrositis.
Manual of Surgery | Alexis Thomson and Alexander Miles
British Dictionary definitions for latah
/ (ˈlɑːtə) /
a psychological condition, observed esp in Malaysian cultures, in which an individual, after experiencing a shock, becomes anxious and suggestible, often imitating the actions of another person
Origin of latah
1Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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