psychological

[ sahy-kuh-loj-i-kuhl ]

adjective

1. of or relating to psychology.
2. pertaining to the mind or to mental phenomena as the subject matter of psychology.
3. of, pertaining to, dealing with, or affecting the mind, especially as a function of awareness, feeling, or motivation:

   psychological play;

   psychological effect.

psychological

/ ˌsaɪkəˈlɒdʒɪkəl /

adjective

1. of or relating to psychology
2. of or relating to the mind or mental activity
3. having no real or objective basis; arising in the mind

   his backaches are all psychological

4. affecting the mind

Derived Forms

• ˌpsychoˈlogically, adverb

Other Words From

• psy·cho·log·i·cal·ly adverb
• non·psy·cho·log·ic adjective
• non·psy·cho·log·i·cal adjective
• pre·psy·cho·log·i·cal adjective
• pseu·do·psy·cho·log·i·cal adjective
• sem·i·psy·cho·log·ic adjective
• sem·i·psy·cho·log·i·cal adjective
• un·psy·cho·log·i·cal adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of psychological¹

First recorded in 1785–95; psycholog(y) + -ical

Example Sentences

Unless you track down an underlying pathology with a brain scan or sophisticated psychological test, the “cure” will always work because there is no disease.

From Nautilus

GPT-2 had problems with biological, physical, psychological, and social reasoning, and a general tendency toward incoherence and non sequiturs.

From MIT Technology Review

I wanted to learn more, to see if it was really possible that mathematics and algorithms could ultimately be the future of more human, more psychological interactions.

From Singularity Hub 

Technology-facilitated violence is the most common type of intimate partner victimization, and it accompanies in-person psychological, physical and sexual violence.

From No Straight News

In the kind of broadest brushstrokes, the idea that we do a lot of things to avoid psychological pain, I think he was spot on.

From Freakonomics

A big part of the reason is a simple psychological phenomenon called cognitive dissonance.

From The Daily Beast

Ironically, the same psychological crutch of self-justification can then help in these situations.

From The Daily Beast

In war, he wrote, “everything is uncertain … all military action is intertwined with psychological forces and effects.”

From The Daily Beast

While Miles says the kids she met were “incredibly brave,” both their psychological and physical pain was evident.

From The Daily Beast

The American Psychological Association also produced a comprehensive review of studies going back three decades.

From The Daily Beast

To reproduce the impulse born of the thought—this is the aim of a psychological method.

From Project Gutenberg

It was apparent by that time that the extender would never be anything in a printing office but a psychological monstrosity.

From Project Gutenberg

Men have no time for subjectivities—except poets, psychological fictionists, and the like, who do not seem to me men at all.

From Project Gutenberg

In that sudden awakening had occurred the very psychological climax required to reveal the passionate emotion accumulated below.

From Project Gutenberg

These letters throw a clear light upon the chief psychological moments of these two eventful years of his life.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• cognitive
• emotional
• intellectual
• mental
• subjective