parataxic

[ par-uh-tak-sik ]

adjective

, Psychology.

1. of or characterized by emotional maladjustment.
2. of or related to a lack of harmony between attitudes, ideas, etc., and other aspects of an individual's personality.

Word History and Origins

Origin of parataxic¹

First recorded in 1935–40; paratax(is) + -ic

Example Sentences

When Psychiatrist Harry Stack Sullivan saw this kind of repetition neurosis, he called it parataxic distortion.

From Time Magazine Archive