Anancasm
noun ·Rare ·Advanced level
Definitions
- 1 Obsessive-compulsive behaviour. countable, obsolete, uncountable
"In general, there have been three methods of approach to the treatment of anancasms: (1) analysis of the symptoms to discover their meaning to the patient, (2) study of the personality, particularly of the fundamental insecurities, fears, dissatisfactions, dependencies and hostilities, (3) regulation of the daily regime with direct attempts to control the anancasms."
- 2 An obsolete term for ritualistic act or sequence of acts performed by a person with obsessive-compulsive neurosis. wordnet
- 3 In the philosophy of Charles Peirce, a mode of evolution occurring by mechanical necessity. countable, uncountable
"If the development of ideas under the influence of the study of external facts be considered as external anancasm, — it is on the border between the external and the internal forms, — it is, of course, the principal thing in modern learning."
Example
More examples"In general, there have been three methods of approach to the treatment of anancasms: (1) analysis of the symptoms to discover their meaning to the patient, (2) study of the personality, particularly of the fundamental insecurities, fears, dissatisfactions, dependencies and hostilities, (3) regulation of the daily regime with direct attempts to control the anancasms."
Etymology
From Ancient Greek ἀνάγκασμα (anánkasma, “compulsion”).
Related phrases
More for "anancasm"
Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.