Definitions
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- adjective Pertaining to
pithiatism
Etymologies
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Examples
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dlpratt commented on the word pithiatic
Page 133 (chapter "Infinitesimal") of "Elegance of the Hedgehog": "At the moment he is enduring Jacinthe Rosen's pithiatic prattling." Found the word in SOED but not MW-3. I was mostly curious to see whether anyone else has asked wordnik; in fact, I am just the second.
September 9, 2009
mollusque commented on the word pithiatic
I encountered it in the same place; it seems to mean "hysterical". Online it appears in the delightful phrase, "pithiatic rhinolalia".
January 19, 2010
john commented on the word pithiatic
What appears to be a related word, pythiatism, turns up in this image from 1918 of what looks like a medical journal or book on hysteria.
February 22, 2010
Prolagus commented on the word pithiatic
"(Something) whose symptoms are due to to suggestion/hypnosis".
Its etymology is peithein = to persuade. Word coined in 1901 by neurologist Babinski.
February 23, 2010
knitandpurl commented on the word pithiatic
"At the moment he is enduring Jacinthe Rosen's pithiatic prattling. She brings to mind a hen at the foot of a mountain of grain."
The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery, translated by Alison Anderson, p 133 of the Europa Editions paperback
September 28, 2012