This week’s theme
Toponyms

This week’s words
antimacassar
podunk
charlatan
spaniel
Jerusalem syndrome


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A.Word.A.Day

PRONUNCIATION:

(ji-ROOS-uh-luhm SIN-drohm)

MEANING:

noun: A phenomenon in which a visitor to a holy place suffers from religious psychosis, such as believing him- or herself to be a messiah.

ETYMOLOGY:

After Jerusalem, Israel, where the phenomenon was first described by the psychiatrist Heinz Herman. Earliest documented use: 1987.

USAGE:

“Catherine admits a patient with Jerusalem syndrome who believes he has been touched by the hand of God.”
Kathryn Shattuck; What’s On Thursday; The New York Times; May 22, 2014.

A THOUGHT FOR TODAY: