Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of hedonic
First recorded in 1650–60; Greek hēdonikós “pleasurable,” from hēdon(ḗ) “pleasure” + -ikos -ic; see also sweet
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Psychologists call this hedonic adaptation: the tendency to absorb improvements into our baseline until they no longer feel like gains.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 18, 2026
The BLS also tries to identify price changes by controlling for improvements in product quality for a lot of goods—including computers, internet access, phone plans, and cars—through a process called hedonic price adjustment.
From Slate ● Apr. 24, 2026
He explained that to younger people like his students, collecting and renting DVDs is a way “to be able to slow down and get off this hedonic treadmill of ‘where’s my next stimulus coming from.’”
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 23, 2026
Psychologists differentiate between two aspects of happiness: "hedonic wellbeing," related to emotional experiences, and "eudemonic wellbeing," which concerns meaning and purpose in life.
From BBC ● Dec. 25, 2024
But even if the thing were permitted, the lights are not there; it is only by combining the parent psychology and the hedonic derivative, that the work can be done.
From Practical Essays by Bain, Alexander
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.
