psychedelic
Hello, you have come here looking for the meaning of the word psychedelic. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word psychedelic, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say psychedelic in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word psychedelic you have here. The definition of the word psychedelic will help you to be more precise and correct when speaking or writing your texts. Knowing the definition ofpsychedelic, as well as those of other words, enriches your vocabulary and provides you with more and better linguistic resources.
English
Etymology
From Ancient Greek ψυχή (psukhḗ, “mind, soul”) + δῆλος (dêlos, “manifest, visible”) + -ic. Coined by English psychiatrist Humphry Osmond in 1956 in a letter to Aldous Huxley.
Pronunciation
- (UK) IPA(key): /ˈsaɪ.kəˌdɛl.ɪk/, /ˈsaɪ.kɪˌdɛl.ɪk/
- (US) enPR: sī'kĭ-děl'ĭk
Audio (General Australian): (file)
Adjective
psychedelic (comparative more psychedelic, superlative most psychedelic)
- Of, containing, generating, or reminiscent of drug-induced hallucinations, distortions of perception, altered awareness, etc.
- 1967, Joe David Brown, editor, The Hippies, New York: Time, Inc, page 2:
- 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 bright colours, abstract shapes, etc. reminiscent of drug-induced hallucinations or distortions of perception.
- Synonym: multi-coloured
- 2022 September 24, HarryBlank, “Transition”, in SCP Foundation, archived from the original on 23 May 2024:
- 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.
Derived terms
Translations
of, containing or generating hallucinations, etc.
|
Noun
psychedelic (plural psychedelics)
- 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.
- 2006, Dean McCormick, Dead End Street, page 62:
- I was going to become a three-drug connection to all my friends, psychedelics, hash and pot.
Translations
psychoactive substance
|
Interjection
psychedelic