ABULIA

Meaning

Absence of willpower or decisiveness, especially as a symptom of mental illness.

Etymology

Origin: Latin

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *né Proto-Indo-European *n̥- Proto-Hellenic *ə- Ancient Greek ἀ- (a-) Ancient Greek βούλομαι (boúlomai) Proto-Indo-European *-h₂ Proto-Indo-European *-éh₂ Proto-Hellenic *-ā́ Ancient Greek -ᾱ (-ā) Ancient Greek -η (-ē) Ancient Greek βουλή (boulḗ) Proto-Indo-European *-h₂ Proto-Indo-European *-éh₂ Proto-Indo-European *-i-eh₂ Proto-Hellenic *-íā Ancient Greek -ῐ́ᾱ (-ĭ́ā) Ancient Greek ἀβουλία (aboulía)bor. New Latin abūliabor. English abulia From New Latin abūlia, from Ancient Greek ἀβουλία (aboulía, “irresolution”), from ἀ- (a-, “without”) + βουλή (boulḗ, “will”).

Synonyms & Antonyms

NYT Puzzle Appearances

No published puzzle dates on file for this word yet. It is part of the official NYT Spelling Bee word list for 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, 2026.