Definition of CATHARTIC

Word History of Catharsis and Cathartic

Adjective

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.

Examples of cathartic in a Sentence

Adjective

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 on the Web: Adjective

Paraders and crowd members alike took them up on the offer, exchanging cathartic squeezes with strangers. — Doug Maccash, nola.com, "New Orleans’ Pride Parade 2019 was a glorious group hug," 9 June 2019 According to the Huff Post and various other op eds, KonMari-ing your dating life is actually incredibly cathartic. — Taylor Mead, House Beautiful, "Can You Marie Kondo Your Dating Life?," 25 Mar. 2019 There was no shortage of reasons for why Kansas City’s 31-13 win over the Indianapolis Colts on Saturday was cathartic. — Andrew Beaton, WSJ, "The Kansas City Chiefs Defensive Exorcism," 13 Jan. 2019 Nails 17 Slides Few things are more cathartic than painting your own nails—and more infuriating than to have them chip or smudge minutes later. — Glamour, "17 Ways You’re Accidentally Messing Up Your Nails," 12 Mar. 2019 More Essays When a donor is deceased, the interaction with the family always reminds me how wonderful and cathartic the donation process can be. — Joshua Mezrich, WSJ, "Losing the Humanity of Transplants," 18 Jan. 2019 Tyner believes hip-hop rose from the ashes of low-income neighborhoods and evolved into an art form that was not only cathartic but relatable and infectious. — Brandon T. Harden, Philly.com, "Rare interviews of Run DMC, The Roots, Jay-Z, and others have been unearthed through this Philly radio host's new podcast," 25 Apr. 2018 Honestly, a good cry in public can be pretty cathartic. — Emily Wang, Teen Vogue, "Sophie Turner Explains Crying While in New York City With Joe Jonas," 17 Aug. 2018 Feminasty is cathartic, hilarious, enlightening, and rage-provoking. — Erin Gibson, Glamour, "I Tossed $2,500 Worth of Makeup and Started Over With All Women-Owned Brands," 25 Sep. 2018

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.