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hedonics

American  
[hee-don-iks] / hiˈdɒn ɪks /

noun

(used with a singular verb)

  1. the branch of psychology that deals with pleasurable and unpleasurable states of consciousness.

hedonics British  
/ hiːˈdɒnɪks /

noun

  1. the branch of psychology concerned with the study of pleasant and unpleasant sensations

  2. (in philosophy) the study of pleasure, esp in its relation to duty

"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 hedonics

First recorded in 1860–65; hedonic, -ics

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.

This may help us to understand better the relations between aesthetics and hedonics, and the nature of that objectification in which we have placed the difference between beauty and pleasure.

From The Sense of Beauty Being the Outlines of Aesthetic Theory by Santayana, George

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.