dysthymia

[dis-thahy-mee-uh]

noun

1. depression; despondency or a tendency to be despondent.

dysthymia

/ dɪsˈθaɪmɪə /

noun

1. the characteristics of the neurotic and introverted, including anxiety, depression, and compulsive behaviour

2. obsolete,  a relatively mild depression

dysthymia

1. A mood disorder characterized by chronic mild depression.

Other Word Forms

• dysthymic adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of dysthymia¹

1840–50; < New Latin < Greek dysthymía; dys-, -thymia

Word History and Origins

Origin of dysthymia¹

C19: New Latin, from Greek dusthumia, from _dys- + thumos mind

Example Sentences

At its heart, the book is a record of Baek's conversations with her psychiatrist as she navigates dysthymia - a mild but long-lasting type of depression - and anxiety disorders.

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For a decade she received treatment for dysthymia, a mild but long-lasting type of depression, which formed the basis of her bestseller, said her Bloomsbury bio.

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Flashbacks to the uneasy beginning of his relationship with Turid prove he was already detached from his emotional core, suffering from dysthymia for years prior to the ship burning.

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My doctor explained to me that persistent depressive disorder, also called dysthymia, was a type of “functional depression” that lasts for years and often for a lifetime.

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The term dysthymia is also used for mild, long-term depression – usually lasting two years or more.

Read more on The Guardian