Akathisia
//æ.kəˈθɪ.si.ə// noun
noun ·Rare ·Advanced level
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A sensation of restlessness characterized by an inability to sit still/down or remain motionless/seated, arising from a subjective need or desire to move, often coinciding with the sensation of twitching of muscles, often as a side effect of psychiatric medications. countable, uncountable
"Haskowic first described this condition last November and applied the term "Akathisia" to it. The subject can seat himself and remain seated a few minutes, but then the contortions begin, and unless he gets up he suffers actual torture."
Example
More examples"Haskowic first described this condition last November and applied the term "Akathisia" to it. The subject can seat himself and remain seated a few minutes, but then the contortions begin, and unless he gets up he suffers actual torture."
Etymology
From a- + Ancient Greek κάθισις (káthisis, “sitting”) + -ia. See also κᾰθῐ́ζω (kăthĭ́zō, “to sit down”).
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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.