prosopagnosia

American  

[proh-soh-pag-noh-zhuh, -zhee-uh, -zee-uh, prahs-uh-] / ˌproʊ soʊ pægˈnoʊ ʒə, -ʒi ə, -zi ə, ˌprɑs ə- /

noun

Neurology, Pathology.

1. a neurological disorder, unrelated to impaired vision or memory dysfunction, that makes the recognition of faces extremely difficult or impossible.

   The seemingly healthy woman was diagnosed with prosopagnosia after failing to identify her parents, her husband, herself, or any of her children from a collection of photographs.

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prosopagnosia British  

/ ˌprɒsəpæɡˈnəʊszɪə /

noun

1. an inability to recognize faces

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Etymology

Origin of prosopagnosia

First recorded in 1950; from Greek prósōp(on) “face, person” ( prosopopoeia ( def. ) ) + agnosia ( def. )

Example Sentences

For instance, part of my autism, I have prosopagnosia, which makes it difficult for me to recognize individual faces.

From Salon • May 14, 2023

Faceblind.org co-founder Brad Duchaine says it can be difficult for people with prosopagnosia to get a diagnosis.

From Washington Post • Sep. 17, 2022

“Most physicians and many neurologists will not have experience with it,” says Duchaine, whose laboratory explores the mechanisms underlying prosopagnosia and the different forms in which it presents.

From Washington Post • Sep. 17, 2022

Esteemed actor Brad Pitt, who won an Academy Award for his performance in "Once Upon a Time in... Hollywood," revealed in a recent interview that he may suffer from the neurological disorder known as prosopagnosia.

From Salon • Jul. 8, 2022

What other information can a person suffering from prosopagnosia use to figure out whom they are seeing?

From Textbooks • Jun. 19, 2013