conatus

American  

[koh-ney-tuhs] / koʊˈneɪ təs /

noun

1. an effort or striving.

2. a force or tendency simulating a human effort.

3. (in the philosophy of Spinoza) the force in every animate creature toward the preservation of its existence.

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conatus British  

/ kəʊˈneɪtəs /

noun

1. an effort or striving of natural impulse

2. (esp in the philosophy of Spinoza) the tendency of all things to persist in their own being

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Other Word Forms

Inflected Forms

noun

• conatus
  plural

Etymology

Origin of conatus

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

Example Sentences

Ille stolide perrexerunt ad dicunt quod "illi conatus defecerint."

From Slate • Feb. 11, 2013

Ast verò Munsterus cum incendij tanti & tam incredilis caussas in famosissimâ Ætna inuestigare conatus sit, quam rem illic naturalem facit, hic verò præternaturalem imo infernalem faciat, an non monstri simile est?

From The Principal Navigations, Voyages, Traffiques and Discoveries of the English Nation — Volume 01 by Hakluyt, Richard

Itaque ad hujusmodi conatus nolite expavescere; jam enim toties eorum calumniae repulsae sunt, ut nihil nunc agant, quam vetera ut nova proponere, instaurare disjecta, detecta retexere.

From The Irish Ecclesiastical Record, Volume 1, March 1865 by Various

Nequaquam enim mortem intentat matri, sed actione, quam non ipse sed corpus matris producit, conatur ad lucem pervenire, et iste conatus non nisi ex naturali concursu rerum fit matri causa mortis.

From Essays In Pastoral Medicine by ?Malley, Austin

The first production from these earthy matters, while they were still new and in their simple state, was production of seed; the first conatus therein could not be any other.

From Angelic Wisdom Concerning the Divine Love and the Divine Wisdom by Ager, John