antivitalistic
|an-ti-vi-tal-is-tic|
🇺🇸
/ˌæn.ti.vaɪˈtæl.ɪs.tɪk/
🇬🇧
/ˌæn.tɪ.vaɪˈtæl.ɪs.tɪk/
against vitalism
Etymology
'antivitalistic' originates from modern English formation combining the prefix 'anti-' (from Greek 'anti-' meaning 'against') with 'vitalistic', which traces to Latin 'vitalis', where 'vita' meant 'life'.
'antivitalistic' changed from formations such as the noun/adjective 'antivitalist' plus the adjectival suffix '-ic' (common in 19th–20th century English), and 'vitalistic' itself derives from French 'vitalisme' and Latin 'vitalis'.
Initially the Latin root 'vitalis' meant 'of life'; over time English formations combining it with the prefix 'anti-' came to mean 'against the doctrine of vitalism', a sense retained in 'antivitalistic'.
Meanings by Part of Speech
Adjective 1
opposed to vitalism; denying or critical of the doctrine that living organisms are governed by a special non-physical vital force (vitalism).
The scientist presented an antivitalistic argument, insisting that biological phenomena could be explained entirely by chemistry and physics.
Synonyms
Antonyms
Last updated: 2025/09/12 08:06