Word
accidie
Phoneticsac·ci·die
UK/ˈæksɪdi/
Definition
n. a feeling of deep sadness, boredom, or lack of interest in life. It is an old word that people used to describe a spiritual or mental state of being stuck.
n. a state of spiritual or mental depression, characterized by a lack of interest in life or a sense of being stuck. Often associated with medieval religious contexts as a form of spiritual sloth or melancholy.
Examples
“The monk struggled with accidie during the long winter months.”
“In medieval literature, accidie was often depicted as a heavy, invisible weight that prevented the soul from seeking divine grace.”
“The poet's later works are marked by a pervasive sense of accidie, reflecting a deep disillusionment with the very ideals that had once driven his creative output.”
Examples
simple
“The monk struggled with accidie during the long winter months.”
contextual
“In medieval literature, accidie was often depicted as a heavy, invisible weight that prevented the soul from seeking divine grace.”
complex
“The poet's later works are marked by a pervasive sense of accidie, reflecting a deep disillusionment with the very ideals that had once driven his creative output.”
Etymology
From Middle English accidie, from Anglo-Norman accidie, Old French accide, accidie, from Late Latin accīdia, alteration of acēdia (“sloth, torpor”), from Ancient Greek ἀκήδεια (akḗdeia, “indifference”), from ἀ- (a-, “not”) + κῆδος (kêdos, “care”). Doublet of acedia.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Scan code
englishreference.com/q/accidie