Word
psyche
Phoneticspsy·che, stress on the first syllable
US/ˈsaɪki/
UK/sˈaɪkiː/
Definitions
01the human mind
C1 · Advanced Countable noun Academic
n. the human mind, including your deepest thoughts, feelings, and spirit.
n. the human mind as the central force in thought, emotion, and behaviour; the totality of the conscious and unconscious.
“The trauma of the war left a deep scar on the nation's psyche.”
“Jungian analysts argue that the collective psyche contains archetypes that are shared across all human cultures.”
02Greek mythology
C2 · Proficiency Religion Literary
n. a princess in Greek stories who represented the soul and married Cupid.
n. the personification of the soul in Greco-Roman mythology, typically depicted as a mortal princess who became the wife of Eros.
“The story of Cupid and Psyche is a famous myth about love and the soul.”
“Renaissance painters often depicted Psyche with butterfly wings to symbolise the transformative nature of the human spirit.”
03to prepare mentally
B2 · Upper Intermediate Informal
v. to get yourself or someone else mentally ready for something difficult.
v. to prepare oneself or another person mentally for a challenge or task; frequently used with 'up'.
“She had to psyche herself up before the big presentation.”
“The coach spent the final minutes in the locker room trying to psyche the players up for the championship match.”
Antonyms
Usage
Often appears in the phrase 'the human psyche' or 'the collective psyche'.
Real-World Examples
“But travelling the country, we found that High Streets still occupy a special place in our psyche.” “One, contemporary western novels had become “ever more radically centred on the individual psyche”.” Etymology
From Ancient Greek ψυχή (psukhḗ, literally “Soul, Spirit”).
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Word family
NOUN
Domain
- Exam level
- CambridgeCambridgeCambridge English QualificationsThe exam suite from Cambridge University Press & Assessment, from A1 Movers up to C2 Proficiency. The benchmark names double as CEFR labels.C1 AdvancedIELTSIELTSInternational English Language Testing SystemThe 0–9 band test co-owned by the British Council, IDP, and Cambridge. Used for university entry, work, and migration.7.0–8.0TOEFL iBTTOEFL iBTTest of English as a Foreign Language, Internet-Based TestETS's academic English test, the standard route for US university admissions. Scored 0–120, with a 1–6 scale since 2026.1–6 scale: 5.0–5.595–113TOEICTOEICTest of English for International CommunicationETS's workplace English test, big in Japan and Korea. Listening & Reading scores 10–990 and tops out at C1.945–990
- Frequency
- Frequent
- Level
- C1 · Advanced
- Updated
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QR code
englishreference.com/q/psyche