Standard Lemma guide

catatonia

noun · 4 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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  • /ˌkætəˈtoʊniə/
  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.

1

noun

Meaning 1

A severe psychiatric condition, often associated with schizophrenia, characterized by a tendency to remain in a rigid state of stupor for long periods which give way to short periods of extreme agitation.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: uncountable, usually

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

A frozen, unresponsive state, as of electronic equipment.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: informal, uncountable, usually

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

a form of schizophrenia characterized by a tendency to remain in a fixed stuporous state for long periods; the catatonia may give way to short periods of extreme excitement

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: catatonic schizophrenia, catatonic type schizophrenia

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: schizophrenia, schizophrenic disorder, schizophrenic psychosis, dementia praecox

4

noun

Meaning 4

extreme tonus; muscular rigidity; a common symptom in catatonic schizophrenia

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: tonicity, tonus, tone

History

Etymology

From international scientific vocabulary, from German Katatonie, from New Latin catatonia, from a Greek word meaning to stretch tight. By surface analysis, cata- + tone + -ia.

Across languages

Translations

26 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Armenian: կատատոնիա (katatonia) — severe psychiatric condition
  • Chinese Mandarin: 緊張症 /紧张症 (jǐnzhāngzhèng) — severe psychiatric condition
  • Czech: katatonie — severe psychiatric condition
  • Danish: katatoni — severe psychiatric condition
  • Dutch: catatonie — severe psychiatric condition
  • Estonian: katatoonia — severe psychiatric condition
  • Finnish: katatonia — severe psychiatric condition
  • French: catatonie — severe psychiatric condition
  • German: Katatonie — severe psychiatric condition
  • Greek: κατατονία (katatonía) — severe psychiatric condition
  • Hungarian: katatónia — severe psychiatric condition
  • Icelandic: geðstjarfi — severe psychiatric condition
  • Italian: catatonia — severe psychiatric condition
  • Japanese: 緊張病 (kinchōbyō) — severe psychiatric condition
  • Korean: 긴장증 (ginjangjeung) — severe psychiatric condition
  • Lithuanian: katatonija — severe psychiatric condition
  • Polish: katatonia — severe psychiatric condition
  • Portuguese: catatonia — severe psychiatric condition
  • Romanian: catatonie — severe psychiatric condition
  • Russian: кататони́я (katatoníja) — severe psychiatric condition
  • Serbo-Croatian: katatonija — severe psychiatric condition
  • Serbo-Croatian: кататонија — severe psychiatric condition
  • Spanish: catatonia — severe psychiatric condition
  • Swedish: katatoni — severe psychiatric condition
  • Turkish: katatoni — severe psychiatric condition
  • Uzbek: katatoniya — severe psychiatric condition