. | 1. | the recollection or remembrance of the past; reminiscence. |
| 2. | Platonism. recollection of the Ideas, which the soul had known in a previous existence, esp. by means of reasoning. |
| 3. | the medical history of a patient. |
| 4. | Immunology. a prompt immune response to a previously encountered antigen, characterized by more rapid onset and greater effectiveness of antibody and T cell reaction than during the first encounter, as after a booster shot in a previously immunized person. |
| 5. | (often initial capital letter ) a prayer in a Eucharistic service, recalling the Passion, Resurrection, and Ascension of Christ. |
anamnesis an·am·ne·sis (ān'ām-nē'sĭs)
n. pl. an·am·ne·ses (-sēz)
A recalling to memory; recollection.
The complete case history of a patient.
anamnesis
a recalling to mind, or reminiscence. Anamnesis is often used as a narrative technique in fiction and poetry as well as in memoirs and autobiographies. A notable example is Marcel Proust's anamnesis brought on by the taste of a madeleine in the first volume of Remembrance of Things Past (1913-27). The word is from the Greek anamnesis, "to recall or remember."
Learn more about anamnesis with a free trial on Britannica.com.