conatus

[koh-ney-tuh s]

See more synonyms for conatus on Thesaurus.com

noun, plural co·na·tus.

an effort or striving.
a force or tendency simulating a human effort.
(in the philosophy of Spinoza) the force in every animate creature toward the preservation of its existence.

Origin of conatus

1655–65; < Latin: exertion, equivalent to cōnā(rī) to attempt + -tus suffix of v. action

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for conatus

conation, conatus

Examples from the Web for conatus

Historical Examples of conatus

Conatus est omne divortium inter regiam majestatem et reginam dissuadere.
History of the Reformation in the Sixteenth Century, Volume V
J. H. Merle d'Aubigné
Strange that this great length of time should not have produced even one new organ, or the marks of a conatus to produce one.
The Religion of Geology and Its Connected Sciences
Edward Hitchcock

British Dictionary definitions for conatus

conatus

noun plural -tus

an effort or striving of natural impulse
(esp in the philosophy of Spinoza) the tendency of all things to persist in their own being

Word Origin for conatus

C17: from Latin: effort, from cōnārī to try

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