animism

noun an·i·mism \ ˈa-nə-ˌmi-zəm \

|Updated on: 20 Jul 2018

Definition of animism

1 : a doctrine that the vital principle of organic development is immaterial spirit

2 : attribution of conscious life to objects in and phenomena of nature or to inanimate objects

3 : belief in the existence of spirits separable from bodies

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animist

play \-mist\ noun

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animistic

play \ˌa-nə-ˈmis-tik\ adjective

See animism defined for English-language learners

Recent Examples of animism from the Web

That sense of astonishment and animism persisted, helping to inspire hit games such as Donkey Kong, Super Mario Bros., and The Legend of Zelda.

— catherine cusick, Longreads, "Nintendo Can Keep a Secret," 22 June 2018
Abbas devoted the next few years to chronicling other religions and beliefs, including Christianity, Buddhism, Hinduism and animism, which is the belief that animals and plants have a spiritual essence.

— matt schudel, Washington Post, "Abbas, photojournalist of Iranian revolution, religious extremism, dies at 74," 28 Apr. 2018
This native animism will take on special importance in the case of Lenin.

— olga ingurazova, Smithsonian, "What Ever Happened to the Russian Revolution?," 29 Sep. 2017
Animism: The Gods’ Lake is an alternate reality game designed to explore aboriginal Canadian legends through a contemporary setting.

— michael andersen, WIRED, "New ARG Tasks You With Tracking Down Mythical Canadian Creatures," 2 Sep. 2010

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'animism.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.