melancholia

[ mel-uhn-koh-lee-uh, -kohl-yuh ]

/ ˌmɛl ənˈkoʊ li ə, -ˈkoʊl yə /

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See synonyms for melancholia on Thesaurus.com

noun

a mental condition characterized by great depression of spirits and gloomy forebodings.

Psychiatry. endogenous depression.

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Origin of melancholia

From Late Latin, dating back to 1685–95; see origin at melancholy

Words nearby melancholia

melamine, melamine resin, melammed, Melampus, melan-, melancholia, melancholia attonita, melancholiac, melancholic, melancholy, Melanchthon

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021

How to use melancholia in a sentence

Written during an introspective period shortly following the end of a nine-year relationship with his then–fiancée, these songs evoke a sense of somber melancholia that feels truly genuine and could only be written by someone going through it.
Cry Your Heart Out: The 11 Best Breakup Albums Ever Made|Peter Allen Clark|September 17, 2021|Time
Melancholia also produced a scandal at Cannes, but for another reason altogether.
Charlotte Gainsbourg’s Raw Performance in ‘Nymphomaniac’ Is Not About the Sex|Jimmy So|March 21, 2014|DAILY BEAST
But she continues: “What is the relation between a sign and melancholia?”
The Best Things to See at Frieze Art Fair NY 2013|Isabel Wilkinson|May 10, 2013|DAILY BEAST
The distinction between melancholia and non-melancholia is a key part of your argument.
America’s Depression Diagnoses Epidemic and How to Fix It|Jesse Singal|March 30, 2013|DAILY BEAST

He also has a taste for dark fugues, nocturnes, and symphonies of melancholia.
3 Must Reads: ‘Kayak Morning,’ ‘Mr. g,’ and ‘Alex Gilvarry’|Hillary Kelly, Mythili Rao, Jacob Silverman|February 8, 2012|DAILY BEAST
No one who sees Melancholia can deny that that role has arrived for Dunst.
Kirsten Dunst on 'Melancholia' and Lars von Trier|Richard Rushfield|November 11, 2011|DAILY BEAST
In young people particularly, homesickness is a not uncommon cause of melancholia.
Essays In Pastoral Medicine|Austin Malley
In melancholia, as a rule, sleep is very much disturbed, and at times patients do not sleep at all.
Essays In Pastoral Medicine|Austin Malley
Nearly three-fourths of the patients who suffer from melancholia will recover from a first attack under proper care.
Essays In Pastoral Medicine|Austin Malley
In the agitated form of melancholia, the patient is often quiet only when under the influence of a sleeping-potion.
Essays In Pastoral Medicine|Austin Malley
Then it became gradually limited to those forms of insanity which differed from melancholia.
Essays In Pastoral Medicine|Austin Malley

British Dictionary definitions for melancholia

melancholia

/ (ˌmɛlənˈkəʊlɪə) /

noun

a former name for depression

Derived forms of melancholia

melancholiac, adjective, noun

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

Medical definitions for melancholia

melancholia

[ mĕl′ən-kō′lē-ə ]

A mental disorder characterized by depression, apathy, and withdrawal.

Other words from melancholia

mel′an•cho′li•ac (-lē-ăk′) adj. n.

melancholia

Origin of melancholia

Words nearby melancholia

Words related to melancholia

How to use melancholia in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for melancholia

Derived forms of melancholia

Medical definitions for melancholia

Other words from melancholia