Mental or Behavioral Dysfunction
melancholia Audio
mel·an·cho·li·a [ mel-uhn-koh-lee-uh, -kohl-yuh ]
Etymology:
Greek melas = black + chole = bile + -ia = the ancient ending signifying disease, as used, for example, in hysteria, pneumonia, ophthalmia
Definitions related to melancholia:
  • Severe depressive state. Used in the term involutional melancholia as a descriptive term and also in reference to a distinct diagnostic entity.
    Sadock's Comprehensive Glossary of Psychiatry and Psychology
    BJ Sadock Titles Press, 2012
  • (melancholic depression) A subtype of depression characterized by the inability to find pleasure in positive things combined with physical agitation, insomnia, or decreased appetite.
    NCI
    U.S. National Cancer Institute, 2021
  • Melancholia, formerly the psychological condition known as depression. The term now refers to extreme features of depression, especially the failure to take pleasure in...
    Encyclopedia Britannica
    Encyclopedia Britannica, Inc., 2025
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