ataxia
Americannoun
noun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of ataxia
First recorded in 1605–15; from New Latin, from Greek: “indiscipline,” from a- a- 6 + táx(is) -taxis + -ia -ia
Explanation
Ataxia is a medical condition that causes people's muscles to move involuntarily. Having trouble balancing can sometimes be a sign of ataxia. If you suffer from ataxia, your muscles have stopped working together normally — you're not able to coordinate your movements the way you want to. Ataxia is a disorder of the nervous system that can be caused by many different conditions, including vitamin deficiency and inherited illnesses. In medical Latin, ataxia is "confusion or disorder," from the Greek taxis, "arrangement or order."
Vocabulary lists containing ataxia
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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.
The discovery could help accelerate the development of drugs for cerebellar ataxia, a disorder that affects movement and balance.
From Science Daily ● Jan. 19, 2026
Watching his mother get on with life despite suffering from the rare brain condition cerebellar ataxia inspired him to keep going with his own, seemingly unlikely dream of becoming a wrestling star.
From BBC ● Jan. 31, 2025
His research now focuses on addressing language difficulties in autistic people and in people with ataxia, Parkinson’s disease or neurodegenerative disorders.
From Scientific American ● Oct. 12, 2023
It makes Skyclarys, an FDA-approved treatment for the neurologic disorder Friedreich’s ataxia.
From Washington Times ● Jul. 28, 2023
How much can be done for organic nervous disease by attention to the individual patient and by favorable suggestion is illustrated in locomotor ataxia.
From Psychotherapy by James J. (James Joseph) Walsh
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.
