-holism

English dictionary entry

Meanings

suffix
  1. A form of addiction, either a physical or obsessive dependency.

Word forms

-holism -aholism

Etymology

Etymology tree Akkadian 𒎎𒋆𒁉𒍣𒁕 (guḫlum)bor. Aramaic כוחלא (kuḥlā)bor. Arabic كُحْل (kuḥl) Andalusian Arabic اَلْكُحُول (al-kuḥūl)bor. Medieval Latin alcoholder. Middle English alcofol English alcohol Proto-Indo-European *-id- Proto-Indo-European *-yéti Proto-Indo-European *-idyéti Proto-Hellenic *-íďďō Ancient Greek -ῐ́ζω (-ĭ́zō) Proto-Indo-European *-mos Proto-Indo-European *-mós Ancient Greek -μός (-mós) Ancient Greek -ισμός (-ismós)der. English -ism English alcoholism English -holism Rebracketing of alcoholism, the name of one of the first addictions to be widely identified both medically and socially. It should be noted that the word alcoholism is broken up into the root, alcohol, and the suffix -ism, not alco and -holism. The suffix -holism is thus a result of false splitting.

Related words

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