Showing results for "psyche"

• a variation of psych.

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• psyche
  psyche

  verb (used with object)

  a variant of psych.
• Psyche
  Psyche

  noun

  a personification of the soul, which in the form of a beautiful girl was loved by Eros.

psyche

¹ American  

[sahyk] / saɪk /

verb (used with object)

psyched, psyching

1. a variant of psych.

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Psyche ² American  

[sahy-kee] / ˈsaɪ ki /

noun

1. Classical Mythology. a personification of the soul, which in the form of a beautiful girl was loved by Eros.

2. psyche,

   1. the human soul, spirit, or mind.

   2. Psychology, Psychoanalysis. the mental or psychological structure of a person, especially as a motive force.

3. Philosophy. (inNeoplatonism ) the second emanation of the One, regarded as a universal consciousness and as the animating principle of the world.

4. a female given name.

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Psyche ¹ British  

/ ˈsaɪkɪ /

noun

1. Greek myth a beautiful girl loved by Eros (Cupid), who became the personification of the soul

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psyche ² British  

/ ˈsaɪkɪ /

noun

1. the human mind or soul

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Psyche ¹ Cultural  

1. In Roman mythology, a beautiful girl who was visited each night in the dark by Cupid, who told her she must not try to see him. When she did try, while he was asleep, she accidentally dropped oil from her lamp on him, and he awoke and fled. After she had performed many harsh tasks set by Cupid's mother, Venus, Jupiter made her immortal, and she and Cupid were married. Her name is Greek for both “soul” and “butterfly.”

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psyche ² Cultural  

1. The mind, soul, or spirit, as opposed to the body. In psychology, the psyche is the center of thought, feeling, and motivation, consciously and unconsciously directing the body's reactions to its social and physical environment.

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Etymology

Origin of Psyche

First recorded in 1650–60 Psyche for def. 2a; from Latin psȳchē, from Greek psȳchḗ literally, “breath,” derivative of psȳ́chein “to breathe, blow,” hence, “live” ( see psycho-)

Explanation

Another word for the place where your thoughts come from is your psyche. Not your actual brain, but whatever it is that generates all of your thoughts and emotions. Psyche comes from the Greek psykhe, which means “the soul, mind, spirit, or invisible animating entity which occupies the physical body.” That about sums the way we understand the word today. People have their own individual psyches of course, but you often hear the word used to describe the similar mind set or thought process of a group of people, such as "the American psyche."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

psyche Psyche psyched psyching

A bold and offbeat move, it draws upon notions of art and its place in the human psyche.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 2, 2026

The chip maker’s otherworldly growth has become so ingrained in Wall Street’s psyche that many investors expect the company to beat expectations, leaving shares sliding in six of the past eight post-earnings trading sessions.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 27, 2026

Yet Cusk has found a large fan base for her work, mainly because she is a deft excavator of the human psyche, a writer who can articulate emotional states with uncanny precision and insight.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 24, 2026

"It shapes your psyche and moulds your motivation to fight, so that in critical situations, you know you are capable of something more", said Karyi.

From Barron's ● Aug. 20, 2026

But he took momentary charge of his psyche, despite his losses, and began to feel optimistic.

From "Endgame" by Frank Brady

At asteroid Psyche, the instrument will help scientists identify the chemical elements present in the object's surface material.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 28, 2026

Researchers are now examining those observations as they prepare for the spacecraft's arrival at the asteroid Psyche in 2029.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 28, 2026

The instrument consists of two identical cameras designed to photograph asteroid Psyche in multiple wavelengths of light.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 28, 2026

Scientists believe Psyche could be the exposed partial core of an ancient planetesimal, one of the building blocks that formed planets early in the solar system's history.

From Science Daily ● May 26, 2026

But Psyche kept faith; she told them only that he was a young man, away now on a hunting expedition.

From "Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes" by Edith Hamilton

If you’re anything like me, you’re psyched for Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey, an adaptation of Homer’s epic poem.

From Slate ● Jul. 17, 2026

Netflix is so psyched about generative software that it’s spent the year acquiring an A.I. production studio, launching a different studio for A.I.-animated shorts, and re-creating Gene Wilder’s voice for a Willy Wonka–themed game show.

From Slate ● Jul. 2, 2026

"I picked up the hammer, stuck on Frankie goes to Hollywood's Two Tribes, got myself psyched up and went outside."

From BBC ● May 2, 2026

To me, Jann is a guy that got a lot of people psyched to link arms and write about music at a time when nobody had a place to really do it.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 22, 2025

I was psyched, I'm talking totally gassed about this.

From "Patina" by Jason Reynolds

Of course, there are limits to taking a Panglossian attitude and psyching ourselves up in the face of challenges.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 21, 2025

It can be a challenge to find motivation while working without concrete deadlines, but Isaac and Karen share ideas for psyching yourself into a creative routine.

From Slate ● Feb. 9, 2023

Clever on and off the court, Medvedev enjoys psyching out his opponents not only with his combination of impenetrable defense and sneaky offense but with his needling comments.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 30, 2022

“Every day I get into my car, every day I decide to step out of my house, it’s a psyching up that I have to do to myself,” Ourlicht said.

From Seattle Times ● Feb. 16, 2020

He wanted to think the old man was just psyching him out, but something told him the prediction was true.

From "The Son of Neptune" by Rick Riordan

Related Words

• ego
• mind
• soul
• spirit
• subconscious