cathartic

adjective ca·thar·tic \ kə-ˈthär-tik \

Definition of cathartic

:of, relating to, or producing catharsis

cathartic drugs

a cathartic experience

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cathartically

play \-ti-k(ə-)lē\ adverb

Examples of cathartic in a Sentence

There's something cathartic about a punch in the nose. —Michael Farber, Sports Illustrated, 28 Jan. 2002
But Vietnam is hard to sell as a tidy, cathartic morality tale of troubled times overcome. —Jennifer Homans, New Republic, 2 & 9 Dec. 2002
Many veterans, at first reluctant to speak, ultimately uncorked their emotions in a cathartic explosion. —Stanley Karnow, New York Times Book Review, 22 Nov. 1992
It provokes no healthy tears, whereas Cervantes never fails … to open the cathartic floodgates. —Anthony Burgess, Homage to Qwert Yuiop: Selected Journalism 1978-1985, 1986

Recent Examples of cathartic from the Web

Pink makes a cathartic, empowering comeback with a new single after five years without releasing an album.

— raisa bruner, Time, "5 Songs You Need to Listen to This Week," 11 Aug. 2017
When this vision is made manifest, its violence is more ritualistic than cathartic, an encounter whose unlikelihood in literal-minded terms encourages us to read it as myth.

— john defore, The Hollywood Reporter, "'Mohawk': Fantasia Review," 28 July 2017
Sitting in front of the camera, as their mother so memorably did back in 1995 for that infamous Panorama interview, has clearly been a cathartic experience for the two princes.

— katie nicholl, Vanities, "With the New Documentary About Princess Diana, William and Harry Take Charge of Their Mother’s Legacy," 24 July 2017
Everyone can understand the cathartic abandon of a Carnival parade, after all.

— doug maccash, NOLA.com, "Arcade Fire's trashy new New Orleans video: lovely but too long," 17 July 2017
See more of the pieces available and engineered for cathartic shouting and sweating below.

— The Cut, "These Lululemon Leggings Will Make You Want to Scream," 7 July 2017
The trainer cited the last career race of 2011 Preakness Champion Shackleford as a particularly cathartic day beneath the Twin Spires.

— danielle lerner, The Courier-Journal, "For Louisville's Dale Romans, Churchill Downs success has been decades in the making," 1 July 2017
How cathartic can music be in the wake of a soul-sapping tragedy?

— george varga, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds return to San Diego after leader's soul-sapping tragedy," 26 June 2017
In addition to being my daily cathartic release, dance also has provided me with limitless opportunities for growth as a student and as a person.

— heide janssen, Orange County Register, "Where are 2017 Orange County dance students going to college?," 15 June 2017

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

Word History of catharsis and cathartic

Catharsis and cathartic both trace to the Greek word kathairein, meaning “to cleanse, purge.” Catharsis entered English as a medical term having to do with purging the body—and especially the bowels—of unwanted material. The adjective cathartic entered English with a meaning descriptive of such a physically cleansing purge. It didn’t take long for people to start using these words figuratively in reference to emotional release and spiritual cleansing.