Amnesic is a word that describes something or someone experiencing memory loss. The IPA phonetic transcription for amnesic is /æmˈniːzɪk/. The first syllable, "am," is pronounced with the short "a" sound as in "cat." The second syllable, "nes," begins with the "n" sound and has a long "e" sound as in "bee." The final syllable, "ic," is pronounced with a short "i" sound and a hard "c" sound. Overall, the word is spelled as it sounds and is easy to pronounce using the IPA transcription.
Amnesic is an adjective that refers to the state of experiencing amnesia. Amnesia is a neurological condition characterized by the partial or total loss of one's ability to recall or remember information, events, or experiences that would typically be stored in the memory. An amnesic individual may have difficulty retaining new memories and may exhibit an impaired ability to recall past memories. This condition can be temporary or permanent, resulting from various factors such as a head injury, trauma, brain damage, stroke, certain illnesses, or the use of drugs or medications.
The term amnesic can also be used to describe medications or substances that have the ability to induce amnesia. In medical contexts, amnesic drugs are often administered during surgical procedures or in dentistry to alleviate anxiety and reduce the recollection of potentially distressing events or sensations.
Furthermore, amnesic can be used to characterize computer systems or software that possess a lack of memory or that do not retain data after a power cycle. These memory-erasing properties are typically intentional in order to protect sensitive information or maintain user privacy.
Overall, amnesic relates to loss or impairment of memory, whether referring to individuals, medications, or computer systems.
Relating to or affected with amnesia; forgetful.
A practical medical dictionary. By Stedman, Thomas Lathrop. Published 1920.
The word "amnesic" is derived from the Greek word "amnēsia", which means "forgetfulness" or "loss of memory". In Greek, "amnēsia" is formed by combining the prefix "a-" (meaning "without" or "not") with the word "mnēsis" (meaning "memory"). The term "amnesic" was first used in the late 19th century in the field of medicine to describe individuals suffering from memory loss or impaired memory function.