abulia

1 9.9

A serious loss of the ability to decide and act

noun
/əˈbjuːliə/

Specialized

: abulia

Pretty sure I have half these disorders, starting with abulia?

Examples

But Unamuno and Ganivet quickly moved away from their personal experiences with abulia.

Academic text (1992)
Moral abulia and correspondent worship of content-less freedom in every aspect, from personal to political and social.

Blog text (28)
He concludes that the final cause of abulia is a "falta de atencion."

Academic text (1992)
After struggling with abulia, she found it difficult to even choose what to eat for breakfast.
His abulia prevented him from making important decisions about his career and relationships.
The therapist explained that abulia can be a significant symptom of various mental health issues.

Synonyms

aboulia

vsabulia

Specialized

9.9

A condition where a person cannot make decisions or start actions

has identical meaning but is an alternative form of the word

Antonyms

initiative

75 3.5

A willingness to start things without being told

decisiveness

5 3.2

The ability to choose quickly and confidently

How Motivated

initiative

75 3.5

indecision

20 3.4

apathy

43 6.2

abulia

Specialized

1 9.9

Surface Forms

abulia singular

abulias plural

Morphology

abulia = a + bulia

Formed from the Greek negative prefix a- + the combining form bulia 'will', but neither element is a productive or standalone English word, so learners cannot derive the meaning from the parts.

Etymology

Abulia comes from Greek parts a- meaning 'without' and boulē meaning 'will' or 'wish'. So abulia is like being 'without will', which is why it describes a serious loss of the ability to decide or act.