autotelic

[ aw-tuh-tel-ik ]

adjective

, Philosophy.

1. (of an entity or event) having within itself the purpose of its existence or happening.

Other Words From

• auto·telism noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of autotelic¹

First recorded in 1900–05; auto- ¹ + telic

Example Sentences

Before adopting the word “flow” to describe the phenomenon of self-directed creativity, Dr. Csikszentmihalyi called it “autotelic experience,” to denote something done not for an outside reward but for its own intrinsic worth.

From Washington Post

The bonsai’s uselessly autotelic function can seem uncomfortably close to that of the novel.

From The New Yorker

“I am sure that if we had continued to use the precise but cumbersome ‘autotelic experience,’ ” he said in 2000, “few people outside the academic community would have paid attention.”

From Washington Post