diathesis
/daɪˈæθəsɪs/
Word Rarity
Very rare
Frequency: 1.62 in modern English
13
Scrabble Score
9
Letters
2
Syllables
7
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
A hereditary or constitutional predisposition to a disease or other disorder.
Countable; Uncountable
Example Sentences
- "Medical materialism seems indeed a good appellation for the too simple-minded system of thought which we are considering. […] All such mental over-tensions, it says, are, when you come to the bottom of the matter, mere affairs of diathesis (auto-intoxications most probably), due to the perverted action of various glands which physiology will yet discover."
- "There are, however, distinct differences between diatheses and idiosyncrasies; diatheses definitely tend to the development of disease, for example the scrofulous diathesis of our forebears favours the onset of tuberculosis; idiosyncrasies are abnormal reactions but do not necessarily dispose to disease."
- "When a coal miner developed the eye disease nystagmus, was this to be diagnosed as due to work conditions or to an inherent constitutional diathesis?"
Etymology
Origin
Word Breakdown
- Root: diathesis, διάθεσις
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /daɪˈæθəsɪs/
- British English: /daɪˈaθəsɪs/
Usage
Inflected Forms
Phrases
Frequently Paired Words
diathetic
diathetical