aphanisis
|a-pha-ni-sis|
/ˌæfəˈnɪsɪs/
disappearance, vanishing
Etymology
'aphanisis' originates from Ancient Greek, specifically the word 'aphanisis' (ἀφανίσις), where 'a-' meant 'not, un-' and 'phan-' (from 'phaínō') meant 'to appear, to show.'
'aphanisis' comes from the Ancient Greek noun 'aphanisis' and was borrowed into English in scholarly and medical contexts in the late 19th to early 20th century, especially through psychological and psychoanalytic writing.
Initially it meant 'disappearance' or 'vanishing' in a general sense; over time it acquired a specialized psychoanalytic sense referring to the disappearance or loss of sexual desire (libido) at orgasm.
Meanings by Part of Speech
Noun 1
the act or process of disappearing; disappearance or vanishing (rare, literary or technical).
At dusk there was an aphanisis of the last light, and the hills blended into shadow.
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Noun 2
a psychoanalytic term for the (often momentary) disappearance or loss of sexual desire or libido, particularly described at the moment of orgasm (technical sense introduced in early psychoanalytic literature).
Ernest Jones used the term aphanisis to describe the momentary disappearance of sexual desire at orgasm.
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Last updated: 2025/09/15 21:30