lethargy

English

WOTD – 26 July 2011

Etymology

From Middle English litargie, from Medieval Latin litargia, from Late Latin lēthārgia, borrowed from Ancient Greek ληθᾱργῐ́ᾱ (lēthārgíā, “drowsiness”), from λήθᾱργος (lḗthārgos, “forgetful, lethargic”) +‎ -ῐ́ᾱ (-íā, adjectival suffix).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈlɛθ.ə(ɹ).d͡ʒi/

• Audio (Received Pronunciation):

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Noun

lethargy (countable and uncountable, plural lethargies)

1. A state of extreme torpor or apathy, especially with lack of emotion, energy or enthusiasm; (loosely) sluggishness, laziness. [from 14th c.]
   • 1687, Francis Atterbury, An Answer to Some Considerations on the Spirit of Martin Luther and the Original of the Reformation at Oxford‎^[1], page 42:

     Europe lay then under a deep lethargy.

   • 1834, Letitia Elizabeth Landon, Francesca Carrara, volume 2, page 285:

     Gradually the darkened room seems to emerge from its shadows; familiar objects strike upon the senses—and memory is never so terribly distinct as on its first reviving from such momentary lethargy.

   • 1959 March, D. Bertram, “An old friend - the 9.7”, in Trains Illustrated, page 141:

     As already indicated, timekeeping is very poor. Point-to-point times are not kept, even with a clear road, and whilst fast running has never been a feature of the route because of the large number of junctions and speed restrictions, this Sunday night lethargy is hard to explain.
2. (pathology) A condition characterized by extreme fatigue or drowsiness, deep unresponsiveness, or prolonged sleep patterns. [from 14th c.]
   • c. 1599, William Shakespeare, King Henry IV, Part 2:

     This Apoplexie is (as I take it) a kind of Lethargie, a sleeping of the blood, a horson Tingling.

Related terms

• encephalitis lethargica (EL)
• lethargic
• Lethe

Translations

state of extreme torpor or apathy

• Albanian: amti (sq)
• Armenian: թմրածություն (hy) (tʻmracutʻyun), անտարբերություն (hy) (antarberutʻyun), լեթարգիա (hy) (letʻargia)
• Bulgarian: летаргия (bg) f (letargija)
• Catalan: letargia (ca) f
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 暮氣／暮气 (zh) (mùqì), 暮气 (zh) (mùqì)

• Czech: letargie (cs) f
• Dutch: onverschilligheid (nl) f, lethargie (nl) f
• Esperanto: letargio
• Finnish: letargia; uupumus (fi), saamattomuus (fi)
• French: (figurative) léthargie (fr) f, nonchalance (fr) f, langueur (fr) f
• German: Trägheit (de) f, Lethargie (de) f, Teilnahmslosigkeit (de) f, Interesselosigkeit (de) f, Nonchalance (de) f
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Greek: λήθαργος (el) m (líthargos)
• Japanese: 無関心 (ja) (むかんしん, mukanshin), 昏睡 (ja) (こんすい, konsui)
• Latin: torpedo f
• Maori: tīrohea, tūpakutanga
• Portuguese: letargia (pt) f
• Romanian: letargie (ro) f
• Russian: апати́чность (ru) f (apatíčnostʹ), летарги́я (ru) f (letargíja)
• Spanish: atonía f, letargo (es) m, aletargamiento (es) m, sopor (es) m
• Tocharian B: ālasäññe
• Turkish: letarji (tr), uyuşukluk (tr), uyuşuntu, uykuntu

pathological state of fatigue

• Armenian: կեղծամահ (hy) (keġcamah), լեթարգիա (hy) (letʻargia), մահաքուն (hy) (mahakʻun)
• Bulgarian: вялост (bg) f (vjalost), отпуснатост (bg) f (otpusnatost)
• Catalan: letargia (ca) f
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 疲勞／疲劳 (zh) (píláo), 疲劳 (zh) (píláo)

• Czech: letargie (cs) f
• Danish: letargi c
• Dutch: lusteloosheid (nl) f, futloosheid (nl) f, slaapzucht f, lethargie (nl) f
• Esperanto: letargio
• Finnish: letargia
• French: léthargie (fr) f
• German: Lethargie (de) f, Trägheit (de) f, Schlafsucht (de) f
• Greek: λήθαργος (el) m (líthargos)

  Ancient: λήθαργος m (lḗthargos)

• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Indonesian: letargi (id)
• Japanese: 疲労 (ja) (ひろう, hirō)
• Latin: torpedo f, veternus m
• Malay: kelesuan, letargi
• Maori: tīrohea
• Norwegian: letargi m
• Portuguese: letargia (pt) f
• Romanian: letargie (ro) f
• Russian: вя́лость (ru) f (vjálostʹ), уста́лость (ru) f (ustálostʹ), утомле́ние (ru) n (utomlénije)
• Spanish: letargo (es) m, aletargamiento (es) m
• Swedish: letargi (sv) c
• Turkish: letarji (tr), yorgunluk (tr), yorguntu

References

• “lethargy”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.
• “lethargy”, in Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present.