What does "metempsychosis" mean?

Transmigration of the soul, especially its reincarnation after death.

What is a synonym for "metempsychosis"?

Common synonyms include: anabolism, avatar, catabolism, catalysis, communication, conduction.

Pronounced //mɛtəmsʌɪˈkəʊsɪs//.

//mɛtəmsʌɪˈkəʊsɪs// noun

noun ·Uncommon ·Advanced level

Noun

1
Transmigration of the soul, especially its reincarnation after death. countable, uncountable
"Pythagoras borrowed Metempsychosis of the Ægyptians, but since, it hath been received of divers Nations, and especially of our Druides[…]."
2
after death the soul begins a new cycle of existence in another human body wordnet

"If metempsychosis be a true doctrine, her spirit must have once animated a steel-clad knight."

From Late Latin metempsychosis, from Koine Greek μετεμψύχωσις (metempsúkhōsis).

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.