sadism
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sadism
- /ˈseɪdɪzəm/ UK
- /ˈseɪdɪzəm/ Canada, US
- [ˈseɪɾɪzəm] Canada, US
- /ˈsæɪdɪzəm/ Australia
- /ˈsæɪdəzəm/ New Zealand
Where it comes from
From French sadisme and German Sadismus. Named after the Marquis de Sade, famed for his libertine writings depicting the pleasure of inflicting pain to others. The word for "sadism" (sadisme) was coined or acknowledged in the 1834 posthumous reprint of French lexicographer Boiste's Dictionnaire universel de la langue française; it is reused along with "sadist" (sadique) in 1862 by French critic Sainte-Beuve in his commentary of Flaubert's novel Salammbô; it is reused (possibly independently) in 1886 by Austrian psychiatrist Krafft-Ebing in Psychopathia Sexualis which popularized it; it is directly reused in 1905 by Freud in Three Essays on the Theory of Sexuality which definitively established the word.
noun sadisms
- The enjoyment of inflicting pain or humiliation without pity.
- Achievement of sexual gratification by inflicting pain or humiliation on others, or watching pain or humiliation inflicted on others.
-
Deliberate or wanton cruelty, either mental or physical, to other people, or to animals, regardless of whether for (sexual) gratification.
Similar: sadisticness
Translations
Every language
noun psychology: the enjoyment of inflicting pain or humiliation
| Español | sadismo |
|---|---|
| 日本語 | サディズム sadizumu |
| 中文 | 虐待狂 nüèdàikuáng |
| हिन्दी | परपीड़न parpīṛan |
| Português | sadismo |
| Français | sadisme |
| Deutsch | Sadismus |
| Italiano | sadismo |
| Ελληνικά | σαδισμός sadismós |
| Română | sadism |
| Русский | сади́зм sadízm |
| Tiếng Việt | bạo dâm, ác dâm |
| العربية | سادية |
noun sexual gratification from inflicting pain or humiliation, or watching it inflicted
| Español | sadismo |
|---|---|
| हिन्दी | परपीड़न रति parpīṛan rati, परपीड़न कामुकता parpīṛan kāmuktā |
| Português | sadismo |
| Français | sadisme |
| Ελληνικά | σαδισμός sadismós |
| Română | sadism |
noun deliberate cruelty
| Français | sadisme |
|---|
Talk about this word "sadism." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/sadism. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. sadism. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/sadism "sadism." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/sadism.Cite this
@misc{sadism_2026,
title = {sadism},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/sadism},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
