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conatus

American  
[koh-ney-tuhs] / koʊˈneɪ təs /

noun

plural

conatus

  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.

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

"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

Etymology

Origin of conatus

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

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.