What does "automatism" mean?
Automatic or involuntary action.
Automatism
/ɔːˈtɒmətɪzəm/ noun
noun ·Uncommon ·Advanced level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: Automatic or involuntary action.
- Grammar: automatism is listed as noun.
- Nearest alternatives: automatic control, automatic writing, automation, automatization.
- Usage evidence: Surrealism is pure psychic automatism.
How to use "automatism"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "automatism" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "automatism" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "automatism" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "automatism" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "automatism" is acting as noun in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "automatic control" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "automatism", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 Automatic or involuntary action. uncountable
- 2 any reaction that occurs automatically without conscious thought or reflection (especially the undirected behavior seen in psychomotor epilepsy) wordnet
- 3 The power of initiating vital processes from within the cell, organ, or organism, independent of external stimulus. uncountable
- 4 The doctrine that animals are automata, operating according to mechanical laws. uncountable
- 5 A surrealist painting technique whereby one attempts to move the brush, pen etc. without conscious control over it. uncountable
"Overcoming the gravity of representation and the figurative, automatism and acquired reflexes, she mixes brute force and translucid emotions to paint an ontological, disquieting, enigmatic human figure free from artifice, universal in its expression."
Show 1 more definition
- 6 An action performed subconsciously, without any apparent direction from the mind; a thought which appears spontaneously in one's consciousness. countable
"[G]eneralising this phenomenon, Mr. Myers has given the name of automatism, sensory or motor, emotional or intellectual, to this whole sphere of effects, due to 'uprushes' into the ordinary consciousness of energies originating in the subliminal parts of the mind. The simplest instance of an automatism is the phenomenon of post-hypnotic suggestion, so-called."
Synonyms
All synonymsExample
"Surrealism is pure psychic automatism."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "automatism"?
Common synonyms include: automatic control, automatic writing, automation, automatization, bad habit, blind impulse.
How do you use "automatism" in a sentence?
Surrealism is pure psychic automatism.
How do you pronounce "automatism"?
Pronounced /ɔːˈtɒmətɪzəm/.
Etymology
From automat(on) + -ism.