psychedelic
/ˈsaɪ.kəˌdɛl.ɪk/
psychedelic means of, containing, generating, or reminiscent of drug-induced altered awareness, distortions of perception, hallucinations, etc. It carries an Arena rating of 1383, earned across 3 head-to-head judged battles.
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, psychedelic ranks #2,309 of 14,431 for Most Betrayed by Its Sound, #2,374 of 14,451 for Most Whimsical Words, #2,517 of 14,440 for Most Satisfying to Say, #5,341 of 14,340 for Most Vivid Words.
psychedelic is pronounced /ˈsaɪ.kəˌdɛl.ɪk/.
Why “psychedelic” is a great word
A substance or experience that profoundly alters perception and consciousness, manifesting the hidden contents of the mind. From Ancient Greek ψυχή (psukhḗ, 'mind, soul') + δῆλος (dêlos, 'manifest, visible') + English -ic ('of or pertaining to'), coined in 1956 by the English psychiatrist Humphry Osmond. Unlike 'hallucinogenic,' which narrowly denotes sensory distortion, or 'euphoric,' which describes a singular mood, psychedelic implies an expansion of awareness, a revelation of the psyche's architecture. It is the serpentine dance of wood-grain on a ceiling, the synesthetic melt of sound into color, the fractal infinity blooming behind closed eyelids—a temporary dissolution of the ordinary self, leaving the lingering suspicion that the doors of perception, once cleansed, never quite close the same way again.
Etymology
From Ancient Greek ψυχή (psukhḗ, “mind, soul”) + δῆλος (dêlos, “manifest, visible”) + English -ic (prefix forming adjectives with the sense ‘of or pertaining to’), coined by the English psychiatrist Humphry Osmond (1917–2004) in a 1956 letter to Aldous Huxley.
adj
- Of, containing, generating, or reminiscent of drug-induced altered awareness, distortions of perception, hallucinations, etc.“With those drugs has come the psychedelic philosophy, an impassioned belief in the self-revealing, mind-expanding powers of potent weeds and seeds and chemical compounds known to man since prehistory but wholly alien to the rationale of Western society.”
- Of graphics, etc.: having abstract shapes, bright colours, etc., reminiscent of drug-induced distortions of perception or hallucinations.“There was a woman sitting on the edge of his bed. She had coral-orange hair, beryl-blue eyes, arched brows, freckles, a coy smile, a psychedelic labcoat and she was, he suddenly realized, his best friend of over twenty years.”
- Awesome, cool, groovy.
noun
- Any psychoactive substance (such as LSD or psilocybin) which, when consumed, causes perceptual changes (sometimes erratic and uncontrollable), visual hallucination, and altered awareness of the body and mind.“I was going to become a three-drug connection to all my friends, psychedelics, hash and pot.”
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