psyche

Borrowed from Latin psychē, itself a borrowing from Ancient Greek ψυχή (psukhḗ, “soul”).

• enPR: sī'kē, IPA^(key): /ˈsaɪ.ki/

psyche (plural psyches)

1. The human soul, mind, or spirit.
2. (chiefly psychology) The human mind as the central force in thought, emotion, and behavior of an individual.
3. A small white butterfly, Leptosia nina, family Pieridae, of Asia and Australasia.

Shortened form of psychology, from French psychologie, from Latin psychologia, from Ancient Greek ψυχή (psukhḗ, “soul”) and -λογία (-logía, “study of”)

• psych

• IPA^(key): /ˈsaɪk/
• Rhymes: -aɪk

psyche (uncountable)

1. Abbreviation of psychology.

psyche

1. (colloquial) Used abruptly after a sentence to indicate that the speaker is only joking.

psyche (third-person singular simple present psyches, present participle psyching, simple past and past participle psyched)

1. (transitive) To put (someone) into a required psychological frame of mind.
2. (transitive) To intimidate (someone) emotionally using psychology.
3. (transitive, informal) To treat (someone) using psychoanalysis.

• psyche in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.
• psyche in The Century Dictionary, The Century Co., New York, 1911

From Latin psychē, from Ancient Greek ψυχή (psukhḗ).

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• Hyphenation: psy‧che

psyche f (plural psyches)

1. psyche, soul, spirit

• psychisch

Transliteration of Ancient Greek ψυχή (psukhḗ, “soul, breath”)

• (Classical) IPA^(key): /ˈpsy.kʰeː/, [ˈpsʏ.kʰeː]
• (Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): /ˈpsi.ke/, [ˈpsiː.ke]

psychē f (genitive psychēs); first declension

1. mind
2. spirit

First-declension noun (Greek-type).