survivor guilt

noun Psychiatry.
feelings of guilt for having survived a catastrophe in which others died.


Origin:
1970–75

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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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American Heritage
Cultural Dictionary

survivor guilt definition


A deep sense of guilt, combined often with feelings of numbness and loss of interest in life, felt by those who have survived some catastrophe. It was first noticed among survivors of the Holocaust. Survivors often feel that they did not do enough to save those who died or that they are unworthy relative to the perished.

The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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00:10
Survivor guilt is always a great word to know.
So is quincunx. Does it mean:
a calculus or concretion found in the stomach or intestines of certain animals, esp. ruminants, formerly reputed to be an effective remedy for poison.
an arrangement of five objects, as trees, in a square or rectangle, one at each corner and one in the middle.
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