melancholia

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

/ ˌmɛl ənˈkoʊ li ə, -ˈkoʊl yə /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR melancholia ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

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

Nearby words

melamine, melamine resin, melammed, melampus, melan-, melancholia, melancholia attonita, melancholiac, melancholic, melancholy, melanchthon

Origin of melancholia

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

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for melancholia

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
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

Despite this backdrop, Kirsten Dunst radiates excitement when she comes to talk about Melancholia.
Kirsten Dunst on 'Melancholia' and Lars von Trier|Richard Rushfield|November 11, 2011|DAILY BEAST
Melancholia is more favorable than mania in pregnancy, but after labor mania gives the better prognosis.
The Ethics of Medical Homicide and Mutilation|Austin O'Malley
The forms of mental disturbance commonest in puerperal insanity are mania with or without delirium, melancholia, and dementia.
The Ethics of Medical Homicide and Mutilation|Austin O'Malley
He passed through one of those terrific crises of melancholia which at long intervals threatened his reason.
The Love Affairs of Great Musicians, Volume 2|Rupert Hughes
His melancholia started in about that time, and he began to suspect everybody, including me.
The Autobiography of a Thief|Hutchins Hapgood
Melancholia is a condition of abnormal sadness without disorder of intelligence or memory.
Collected Papers on Analytical Psychology|C. G. Jung

British Dictionary definitions for melancholia

melancholia

/ (ˌmɛlənˈkəʊlɪə) /

noun

a former name for depression

Derived Forms

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

Medicine definitions for melancholia

melancholia

[ mĕl′ən-kō′lē-ə ]

n.

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

Related forms

mel′an•cho′li•ac (-lē-ăk′) adj. n.