hedonism

[ heed-n-iz-uhm ]

/ ˈhid nˌɪz əm /

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noun

the doctrine that pleasure or happiness is the highest good.

devotion to pleasure as a way of life: The later Roman emperors were notorious for their hedonism.

OTHER WORDS FOR hedonism

2 sensualism, libertinism, debauchery, dissipation, carousal.

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OPPOSITES FOR hedonism

2 puritanism, asceticism, abstemious, self-denial.

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CAN YOU ANSWER THESE COMMON GRAMMAR DEBATES?

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Question 1 of 7

Which sentence is correct?

His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

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Origin of hedonism

First recorded in 1855–60; from Greek hēdonḗ “pleasure, enjoyment” + -ism

Words nearby hedonism

Hedjaz, hedonic, hedonic calculus, hedonic damages, hedonics, hedonism, hedonist, -hedral, -hedron, Hedy, heebie-jeebies

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use hedonism in a sentence

Now, Ozon has re-imagined the story by swapping the gender of its protagonist – which changes everything yet nothing in this S&M-tinged tale of narcissistic hedonism and obsessive desire.
After months of hype, ‘Bros,’ ‘My Policeman’ ready to debut|John Paul King|September 17, 2022|Washington Blade
So much of this space has been built virtually—on Clubhouse, Discord, Twitter—that the opportunities to meet in real life and hang out are really meaningful for these people, and that’s why there’s such a sense of hedonism to it all.
Behind the Scenes at Art Basel Miami: The Biggest IRL Metaverse Party Yet|Raisa Bruner|December 9, 2021|Time
“We wanted to look at how happiness, and more specifically hedonism and living a full life, were not at odds with sustainability,” says lead author Yomna Sameer, a management professor at Abu Dhabi University.
What the Happiest Countries in the World Can Teach Us About Green Living|Svati Narula|October 21, 2021|Outside Online
The topic connects everything from the riddle of personal motivation, to the pitfalls of increasingly addictive social media, to the conundrum of hedonism and whether a life of stupefied bliss may be preferable to one of meaningful hardship.
Drugs, Robots, and the Pursuit of Pleasure: Why Experts Are Worried About AIs Becoming Addicts|Thomas Moynihan|September 17, 2021|Singularity Hub

To the tune of a Liberace impersonator’s jaunty cover of “Viva Las Vegas,” Snyder revels in the city’s signature hedonism gone awry.
Why Isn’t Sean Spicer Mauled by Zombies in Zack Snyder’s ‘Army of the Dead?’|Melissa Leon|May 21, 2021|The Daily Beast
His life of hedonism suddenly seems empty when he begins to fall in love with Grace.
Is ‘Satisfaction’ a Love Story That’s Too Real About Sex and Marriage?|David Masciotra|September 19, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Those avatars of hedonism, The Europeans, are aghast at discovering that the average American vacation lasts for just 4.1 days.
Obama’s Extravagant Summer Break? More Like, America’s Vacation-Deficit Disorder|Clive Irving|August 10, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Georgia Congressman Bob Barr warned that “the flames of hedonism . . . are licking at the very foundations of our society.”
Justice Kennedy Opened the Door to Same-Sex Marriage, Will He Walk Through Next?|Geoffrey R. Stone|August 3, 2014|DAILY BEAST
But the pleasures of vengeance and hedonism prove a dead end for Wanda.
Holocaust Horrors Haunt the Films ‘Ida’ And ‘The German Doctor’|Jack Schwartz|May 12, 2014|DAILY BEAST
After a night of hedonism, head out into Louisiana's Cajun Country.
The U.S. Road Trips You Should Really Take|Lonely Planet|April 26, 2014|DAILY BEAST
It is comparatively easy at the present time in moral theory to slam both hedonism and apriorism.
Essays in Experimental Logic|John Dewey
Utilitarianism has been rightly called universal hedonism, as distinguished from the hedonism of Epicurus, which was egoistic.
The New Gresham Encyclopedia|Various
Had she her secrets, as he had his, the secrets of his sullen hedonism?
Old People and the Things That Pass|Louis Couperus
For Egoistic Hedonism it is somewhat hard to find a single perfectly appropriate term.
The Methods of Ethics|Henry Sidgwick
Ethical Hedonism, as expounded by Mill, was morally inspiring by its dictate of readiness for absolute self-sacrifice.
The Methods of Ethics|Henry Sidgwick

British Dictionary definitions for hedonism

hedonism

/ (ˈhiːdəˌnɪzəm, ˈhɛd-) /

noun

ethics

the doctrine that moral value can be defined in terms of pleasureSee utilitarianism
the doctrine that the pursuit of pleasure is the highest good

the pursuit of pleasure as a matter of principle

indulgence in sensual pleasures

Derived forms of hedonism

hedonic or hedonistic, adjectivehedonist, noun

Word Origin for hedonism

C19: from Greek hēdonē pleasure

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

Cultural definitions for hedonism

hedonism

[ (heed-n-iz-uhm) ]

In ethics, the doctrine that pleasure or happiness is the highest good in life. Some hedonists, such as the Epicureans, have insisted that pleasure of the entire mind, not just pleasure of the senses, is this highest good.

hedonism

OTHER WORDS FOR hedonism

OPPOSITES FOR hedonism

Origin of hedonism

Words nearby hedonism

Words related to hedonism

How to use hedonism in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for hedonism

Derived forms of hedonism

Word Origin for hedonism

Cultural definitions for hedonism