mithridatism · noun — the practice of gradually ingesting successively greater amounts of a poison in order to build immunity. It carries an Arena rating of 1666, earned across 9 head-to-head judged battles.
Definition from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, mithridatism ranks #16 of 17,114 for Most Storied Words, #843 of 17,128 for Most Ponderous Words, #919 of 17,152 for The Improbable, #1,207 of 17,134 for Most Satisfying to Say.
Why “mithridatism” is a great word
The deliberate practice of inducing immunity to a poison by ingesting it in gradually increased doses. From the name of Mithridates VI, King of Pontus (c. 135–63 BCE), who was reputed to have cultivated such immunity, combined with the suffix -ism, denoting a practice or system. Unlike tolerance, a passive, often incidental endurance, or vaccination, a controlled introduction of a neutralized agent, mithridatism is an ancient, personal, and hazardous art of active self-alteration. It is the careful grinding of arsenic into a daily meal, the steady calibration of a dropper over a glass of wine, the body slowly learning the precise art of its own defense—a grim, intimate dance with death conducted at the dining table, a testament to the paradoxical instinct to arm oneself with the very thing one fears.
❧ Essay by Lexicurio’s AI · definition, etymology & citations from published sources
Etymology
From Mithridates (referring to Mithridates VI of Pontus) + -ism.
noun
- The practice of gradually ingesting successively greater amounts of a poison in order to build immunity.e.g.“Some argue that vaccines are a form of mithridatism; this is generally considered incorrect.”
Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
Words closest in meaning
By meaning, not spelling — each word's AI semantic fingerprint, nearest first.