animus

American  

[an-uh-muhs] / ˈæn ə məs /

noun

1. strong dislike or enmity; hostile attitude; animosity.

2. motivating purpose or intention; animating spirit.

3. (in the psychology of C. G. Jung) the masculine principle, especially as present in women.

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animus British  

/ ˈænɪməs /

noun

1. intense dislike; hatred; animosity

2. motive, intention, or purpose

3. (in Jungian psychology) the masculine principle present in the female unconscious See also anima

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Etymology

Origin of animus

First recorded in 1810–20; from Latin: literally, “mind, spirit, courage, passion, wrath”; akin to Greek ánemos “wind”; see also anima

Compare meaning

How does animus compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• anima vs. animus

Explanation

Saying you have animus toward a person is a fancy way of saying that you hate their guts. You could also say that an animus exists between two people. That's when they hate each others' guts. If you're familiar with the word animosity, meaning bad feelings, you're only a hop, skip, or jump away from understanding animus. But then it gets tricky. The word can also mean a motivating force — you could refer to the fear of infection as the animus behind a movement to sterilize public buildings.

Example Sentences

Think of it like the Animus from the games, only you use it to launch video games.

From The Verge • Sep. 10, 2022

The only other exception comes during a brief moment when Callum, beginning to lose it after a rough ride in the Animus, begins singing some Patsy Cline.

From Slate • Dec. 22, 2016

It’s all lovely, of course, but it certainly feels like Assassin’s Creed: Mordor—minus, one hopes, any whiff of the silly Animus stuff.

From Forbes • Jan. 24, 2014

But without Templars and the Animus, it’s just not an Assassin’s Creed game.

From Forbes • Mar. 3, 2013

Animus, an′im-us, n. intention: actuating spirit: prejudice against.

From Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 1 of 4: A-D) by Various