Definitions
from The Century Dictionary.
- noun A mechanical state of the mind in which reflective consciousness plays little or no part: alluding to the parrot which remembers and repeats words of which it does not know the sense.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun
Mechanical ,repetitive words used withoutunderstanding orconsideration .
Etymologies
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
Latin psittaci, "parrot", and -ism.
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Examples
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It is easy to affirm this separation, thanks to the psittacism of the words, which are here used like counterfeit coin, but we cannot represent it to ourselves, for it corresponds to nothing.
The Mind and the Brain Being the Authorised Translation of L'Âme et le Corps Alfred Binet 1884
chained_bear commented on the word psittacism
Not that that's a *bad* thing...
The mechanical repetition of previously received ideas or images that reflects neither true reasoning nor feeling; repetition of words or phrases parrot-fashion, without reflection, automatically.
February 2, 2007
jmjarmstrong commented on the word psittacism
JM wonders exactly why does Polly want a psittacism?
May 11, 2011