ataraxia
Americannoun
noun
Other Word Forms
- ataractic adjective
- ataraxic adjective
Etymology
Origin of ataraxia
First recorded in 1600–10; from Greek ataraxía “impassiveness, calmness,” equivalent to atarák(tos) “unmoved” ( a- a- 6 + tarak-, a stem of tarássein “to disturb” + -tos verbid suffix) + -s(is) -sis + -ia -ia
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.
And I think what I found is much like what Greek philosophers called ataraxia, a suspended kind of calm in which you can find a surprising strength.
From New York Times
Christians for a century or two never thought of ataraxia or apathy, and, though Clement of Alexandria plays with them, he tries to give them a new turn.
From Project Gutenberg
Such an ataraxia may have been obtained by a few sages of old, but it is hardly human, and Jefferson, like Adams, was very human.
From Project Gutenberg
When the sage realizes this, he will cease to prefer one course of action to another, and the result will be apathy, "ataraxia."
From Project Gutenberg
The method, however, by which ataraxia or peace of mind could be reached, was peculiar to the Sceptic.
From Project Gutenberg
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.
