fetish

fe·tish

noun \ˈfe-tish also ˈfē-\

Definition of FETISH

1

a : an object (as a small stone carving of an animal) believed to have magical power to protect or aid its owner; broadly : a material object regarded with superstitious or extravagant trust or reverence b : an object of irrational reverence or obsessive devotion : prepossession c : an object or bodily part whose real or fantasied presence is psychologically necessary for sexual gratification and that is an object of fixation to the extent that it may interfere with complete sexual expression

2

: a rite or cult of fetish worshipers

3

: fixation

Variants of FETISH

fe·tish also fe·tich \ˈfe-tish also ˈfē-\

Examples of FETISH

1. He has a fetish for secrecy.
2. He wore a fetish to ward off evil spirits.

Origin of FETISH

French & Portuguese; French fétiche, from Portuguese feitiço, from feitiço artificial, false, from Latin facticius factitious

First Known Use: 1613

Related to FETISH

Synonyms: fixation (also fetich), idée fixe, mania, obsession, preoccupation, prepossession

Antonyms: hoodoo, jinx

Related Words: monomania; complex, hang-up, problem, trip; appetite, cacoëthes, compulsion, craving, desire, drive, enthusiasm, fascination, hankering, hunger, infatuation, itch, longing, lust, passion, pining, thirst, urge, yearning, yen; idiosyncrasy, quirk; bent, disposition, inclination, leaning, partiality, penchant, predilection, predisposition, proclivity, propensity, tendency

Near Antonyms: apathy, disinterestedness, disregard, indifference, insouciance, nonchalance, unconcern, unconcernedness

see all synonyms and antonyms

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Other Psychology Terms

hypochondria, intelligence, mania, narcissism, neurosis, pathological, psychosis, schadenfreude, subliminal

Rhymes with FETISH

Lettish, pettish, wettish