cacoëthes

American

[kak-oh-ee-theez] / ˌkæk oʊˈi θiz /

Or cacoethes

noun

an irresistible urge; mania.

cacoethes British

/ ˌkækəʊˈiːθiːz, ˌkækəʊˈɛθɪk /

noun

an uncontrollable urge or desire, esp for something harmful; mania

a cacoethes for smoking

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

cacoethic

adjective

Etymology

Origin of cacoëthes

First recorded in 1555–65; from Latin, from Greek kakóēthes, neuter (used as noun) of kakoḗthēs “malignant,” literally, “of bad character”; see caco-, ethos

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023