ENGLISH
REFERENCE

acataleptic

adj.
C2 Proficiency acatalep·tic

adj. describing a person who is not afraid of death or pain. It is a very rare word used mostly in medical or philosophical contexts.

adj. not fearing death or pain; impervious to suffering. Often used in philosophical or medical contexts to describe a state of mind or a specific type of patient.


SIMPLE

The patient showed an acataleptic attitude toward the surgery.

CONTEXTUAL

In some philosophical traditions, the acataleptic person is seen as having achieved a state of perfect peace.

COMPLEX

The physician noted that the patient's acataleptic response to the terminal diagnosis suggested a level of emotional detachment that was both surprising and concerning.

Origin

From Latin acatalēpticus, from Ancient Greek ἀκατάληπτος (akatálēptos, “incomprehensible”), from ἀ- (a-, “not”) + καταλαμβάνω (katalambánō, “I seize”), from κατά (katá, “against”) + λαμβάνω (lambánō, “I take”).

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