acedia
noun/əˈsiːdɪə/
Etymology Borrowed from Latin acēdia, borrowed from Ancient Greek ἀκηδίᾱ (akēdíā), from ἀκηδής (akēdḗs, “careless”) + -ίᾱ (-íā). Doublet of accidie.
1
Christianity Spiritual or mental sloth and the feeling it provokes; apathy or indifference; a lack of care or interest and the resultant avoidance of duties; a bored melancholy leading to desperation, restlessness and anxiety.
- Her acedia kept her trapped in a cycle of depression and torpor.
- Yet I have come to believe that acedia can strike anyone whose work requires self - motivation and solitudeyear-2008, Kathleen Norris, Acedia & Me: A Marriage, Monks, and a Writer's Life, Riverhead Books, page 6:
- Derived terms
- acedious