Dictionary
Thesaurus
Reference
Translate
Web
Related Searches
on Ask.com
Synonyms
Nearby Entries
introspection - 7 dictionary results

in⋅tro⋅spec⋅tion

  [in-truh-spek-shuhn]
Use introspection in a Sentence
–noun
1. observation or examination of one's own mental and emotional state, mental processes, etc.; the act of looking within oneself.
2. the tendency or disposition to do this.
3. sympathetic introspection.
Origin:
1670–80; < L intrōspect(us), ptp. of intrōspicere to look within (equiv. to intrō- intro- + spec(ere) to look + -tus ptp. suffix) + -ion

Related forms:
in⋅tro⋅spec⋅tion⋅al, adjective
in⋅tro⋅spec⋅tion⋅ist, noun, adjective

Synonyms:
1. self-examination, soul-searching.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To introspection
in·tro·spec·tion   (ĭn'trə-spěk'shən)   
n.  Contemplation of one's own thoughts, feelings, and sensations; self-examination.
in'tro·spec'tion·al adj.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source

Introspection

In`tro*spec"tion\, n. [Cf. F. introspection.] A view of the inside or interior; a looking inward; specifically, the act or process of self-examination, or inspection of one's own thoughts and feelings; the cognition which the mind has of its own acts and states; self-consciousness; reflection.

I was forced to make an introspection into my own mind. --Dryden.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
Cite This Source

introspection 
1677, from L. introspectionem, from introspectus, pp. of introspicere "to look into, look at," from intro- "inward" + specere "to look at" (see scope (1)). Introspective is from 1820.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
Cite This Source

Main Entry: in·tro·spec·tion
Pronunciation: -'spek-sh&n
Function: noun
: an examination of one's own thoughts and feelings —in·tro·spec·tion·al /-shn&l, -sh&n-&l/ adjective
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
Cite This Source

introspection in·tro·spec·tion (ĭn'trə-spěk'shən)
n.
Contemplation of one's own thoughts, feelings, and sensations; self-examination.

in'tro·spect' v.
in'tro·spec'tion·al adj.
in'tro·spec'tive (-tĭv) adj.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Cite This Source

introspection

(from Latin introspicere, "to look within"), the process of observing the operations of one's own mind with a view to discovering the laws that govern the mind. In a dualistic philosophy, which divides the natural world (matter, including the human body) from the contents of consciousness, introspection is the chief method of psychology. Thus, it was the method of primary importance to many philosophers-including Thomas Hobbes, John Locke, George Berkeley, David Hume, James Mill, John Stuart Mill, and Alexander Bain-as it was to the 19th-century pioneers of experimental psychology, especially Wilhelm Wundt, Oswald Kulpe, and Edward Bradford Titchener.

Learn more about introspection with a free trial on Britannica.com.

Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
Cite This Source
Search another word or see introspection on Thesaurus | Reference