animism. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition. 2000.

The American Heritage^® Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition. 2000.

animism

SYLLABICATION:	an·i·mism
PRONUNCIATION:	n-mzm
NOUN:	1. The belief in the existence of individual spirits that inhabit natural objects and phenomena. 2. The belief in the existence of spiritual beings that are separable or separate from bodies. 3. The hypothesis holding that an immaterial force animates the universe.
ETYMOLOGY:	From Latin anima, soul. See an- in Appendix I.
OTHER FORMS:	ani·mist —NOUN ani·mistic —ADJECTIVE


The American Heritage^® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition. Copyright © 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by the Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.