catharsis

noun

ca·​thar·​sis kə-ˈthär-səs 

plural catharses kə-ˈthär-ˌsēz 

1

a

: purification or purgation of the emotions (such as pity and fear) primarily through art

b

: a purification or purgation that brings about spiritual renewal or release from tension

2

: elimination of a complex by bringing it to consciousness and affording it expression

3

: purgation

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Word History of Catharsis and Cathartic

Catharsis and cathartic both trace to the Greek word kathairein, meaning “to cleanse, purge.” Catharsis entered English as a medical term having to do with purging the body—and especially the bowels—of unwanted material. The adjective cathartic entered English with a meaning descriptive of such a physically cleansing purge. It didn’t take long for people to start using these words figuratively in reference to emotional release and spiritual cleansing.

Examples of catharsis in a Sentence

She has learned to have her catharsis, take a deep breath and move on.  … she does not dwell on the negative anymore. —Selena Roberts, New York Times, 24 June 2001

… malevolence is expressed in his decision to absent himself from the courtroom, thereby denying some victims of his torture the catharsis of compelling him to hear their stories of survival. —George F. Will, Newsweek, 25 May 1987

… there's the need for catharsis. If you play it all back a second time, you may wear away some of the pain, as you wear away a record with replaying. —Anatole Broyard, New York Times Book Review, 14 Nov. 1982

As soon as we emerged from the gates of the White House, I became aware of that sea of faces.  … I wanted to cry for them and with them, but it was impossible to permit the catharsis of tears. —Lady Bird Johnson 24 Nov. 1963, in A White House Diary,  1970

Acting is a means of catharsis for her.

Painting is a catharsis for me.

Recent Examples on the Web

His critics were denied the catharsis of seeing a handcuffed former president heading to Rikers Island. —Ben Protess, New York Times, 10 Jan. 2025

Yet Beth finally plunging a knife into her brother’s heart was the catharsis the series had been leading to for years, as the sibling relationship took bigger and bigger steps towards the inevitable. —William Earl, Variety, 16 Dec. 2024

And catharsis may be what viewers need even more than escape in a world of relentless news about war, intolerance and fractured ideologies. —Daniel Fienberg, The Hollywood Reporter, 12 Dec. 2024

Their fraught, almost-silent relationship demands a catharsis Leigh is unwilling to offer us. —Fran Hoepfner, Vulture, 9 Dec. 2024

Word History

Etymology

New Latin, from Greek katharsis, from kathairein to cleanse, purge, from katharos

First Known Use

circa 1775, in the meaning defined at sense 3

Kids Definition

catharsis

noun

ca·​thar·​sis

kə-ˈthär-səs

formal

: the act or process of relieving a strong emotion (as pity or fear) especially by expressing it in art form

cathartic

-ˈthärt-ik

adjective

Medical Definition

catharsis

noun

ca·​thar·​sis

variants also katharsis

kə-ˈthär-səs 

plural catharses also katharses -ˌsēz 

1

: purgation

2

: elimination of a complex by bringing it to consciousness and affording it expression compare abreaction