limbic
Americanadjective
Etymology
Origin of limbic
First recorded in 1880–85; limb(us) 2 + -ic
Explanation
The adjective limbic describes a brain system that is largely responsible for regulating emotions. The limbic system is also where we form a lot of our memories. Limbic derives from the Latin limbus, or "edge," and it's used to describe anatomical structures that border another part. In the case of the brain, the limbic system sits along the edge of both sides of the thalamus. When it comes to emotions, your limbic system is crucial, since it regulates how you feel and how you react to those feelings, as well as affecting the way you learn, remember, and even how you identify odors.
Vocabulary lists containing limbic
Vocabulary from Readings 5, Unit 1
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The Summer of Lost Letters
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The Mechanical Mind of John Coggin
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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.
When one part of the limbic system was relatively large, the other limbic regions also tended to be larger.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 31, 2026
It makes sense, as scent is processed by the limbic system, the part of the brain that handles emotion and memory.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 5, 2025
This innovative approach helped them pinpoint where these two systems interact in the brain -- specifically in a limbic region called the nucleus accumbens, which plays a key role in emotion, motivation, and reward processing.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 25, 2024
Lewy bodies, deposits of alpha-synuclein protein, are found in the brainstem, limbic system and cerebral cortex.
From Science Daily ● Mar. 26, 2024
Surrounding the R-complex is the limbic system or mammalian brain, which evolved tens of millions of years ago in ancestors who were mammals but not yet primates.
From "Cosmos" by Carl Sagan
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
