hyperthymesia
/ˌhaɪ.pɚ.θaɪˈmi.ʒə/
Word Rarity
Very rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 0.00 in modern English
29
Scrabble Score
13
Letters
5
Syllables
10
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
A rare condition in which a person possesses a superior autobiographical memory and is able to recall the vast majority of personal events and experiences in life.
Uncountable
Example Sentences
- "Others may have some degree of hyperthymesia — they may spend an abnormally large amount of time thinking about their personal past, and have an extraordinary capacity to recall specific events in detail."
- "Lesley hadn't been interested in the story, because she didn't think that HSAM (or hyperthymesia, as it was called then) was that rare, having known me for so many years."
- "We discussed memory in the previous chapter of this book, and hyperthymesia is the ultimate example of an ability that everyone shares being carried to superhuman lengths—only, it's very human still."
- "Hyperthymesia is also known as superior autobiographical memory. People either have it or they do not, and there are no more than 20 documented cases of people known to have hyperthymesia. [...] Most people diagnosed with hyperthymesia can remember minute details of events from any given day in their past lives, sometimes beginning with puberty but often going back to early childhood."
Etymology
Word Breakdown
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˌhaɪ.pɚ.θaɪˈmi.ʒə/
- British English: /ˌhaɪ.pə.θaɪˈmiː.zi.ə/