animus

[ an-uh-muhs ]

noun

1. strong dislike or enmity; hostile attitude; animosity.
2. motivating purpose or intention; animating spirit.
3. (in the psychology of C. G. Jung) the masculine principle, especially as present in women. Compare anima ( def 2b ).

animus

/ ˈænɪməs /

noun

1. intense dislike; hatred; animosity
2. motive, intention, or purpose
3. (in Jungian psychology) the masculine principle present in the female unconscious See also anima

Word History and Origins

Origin of animus¹

First recorded in 1810–20; from Latin: literally, “mind, spirit, courage, passion, wrath”; akin to Greek ánemos “wind”; anima

Word History and Origins

Origin of animus¹

C19: from Latin: mind, spirit

Example Sentences

It’s a suspiciously gentle word for, say, mandating genital inspections for school-age children, or outright lying to stoke racial animus—to choose just a couple of examples from a depressingly vast slate of options.

From Slate

Trump’s animus toward wind energy — surpassing even his loathing for California — dates from a losing battle a decade ago, when Scotland’s regional government built an 11-turbine wind farm in Aberdeen Bay near one of his golf courses.

From Los Angeles Times

Anti-Israel animus remains central to the regime.

From BBC

But the baseline assumption should not be that these words and phrases are antisemitic unless and until it can be established that they are accompanied by anti-Jewish stereotypes, animus against Jews as Jews, or conflation of Jews and Israelis.

From Los Angeles Times

While Rufo, in his Politico interview, insisted the "DEI hire" invocation against Gay was "absolutely not fueled by racial animus" or sexism, it's clear the label largely comes off that way.

From Salon