Afflatus
/əˈfleɪtəs/ noun
noun ·Uncommon ·Advanced level
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A sudden rush of creative impulse or inspiration, often attributed to divine influence.
"divine afflatus"
- 2 a strong creative impulse; divine inspiration wordnet
Example
More examples"'Tis extremely difficult to keep up the Spirit of Poetry in another's Compoſitions, tho' you catch all the […] apteſt Moments; and never employ the Mind, but when there is an Impetus comes upon it toward that particular buſineſs: […] I know not how far this was the Caſe with Mr. [Alexander] Pope, in this performance: but wherever it was, the Poet will be little more than a common Man: He is, at ſuch times, much the ſame as a Prophet without his Afflatus."
Etymology
Unadapted borrowing from Latin afflātus (“breath, blowing or breathing on, spiritual inspiration”), from afflō (“to blow, breathe on or towards”) + -tus (forming action nouns), from ad- (“to, towards”) + flō (“breathe, blow”).