animalistic C2+ Topic:Describing Qualities US /ˌænɪməˈlɪstɪk/ UK /ˌænɪməˈlɪstɪk/ See IPA manual Meanings 1 adj characteristic of animals; driven by instinct rather than reason A raw, animalistic fear took hold of the crowd. Thesaurus Synonyms 1 adj · characteristic of animals;... instinctivebestialbrutishferalprimalsavagebeastly ↔ Opposites rationalcivilizedhumanrefined Word family Derived forms animalistically Related forms animalanimalismanimalist Etymology AI details From animalist (or animal) + -istic. Animal derives from Latin animal ('living being'), from animalis ('living'), from anima ('breath, soul, life'). animal Middle English anima Latin View etymology graph -> Topics Describing Qualities Word Formation & Derivatives External links Google Images Cambridge Dictionary Wiktionary # animalistic **Type:** Word **Level:** C2+ **Part of speech:** adj **IPA (US):** /ˌænɪməˈlɪstɪk/ **IPA (UK):** /ˌænɪməˈlɪstɪk/ ## Meanings 1. characteristic of animals; driven by instinct rather than reason ## Examples - A raw, animalistic fear took hold of the crowd. ## Synonyms - instinctive - bestial - brutish - feral - primal - savage - beastly ## Antonyms - rational - civilized - human - refined ## Derived Forms - animalistically ## Related Forms - animal - animalism - animalist ## Roots and Affixes - Root: animal - Root: anima ## Etymology From animalist (or animal) + -istic. Animal derives from Latin animal ('living being'), from animalis ('living'), from anima ('breath, soul, life'). ## AI Etymology Animalistic is from animalist (or animal) + -istic. Animal derives from Latin animal ('living being'), from animalis ('living'), from anima ('breath, soul, life'). Important recorded forms include animal (Latin) and anima (Latin). Morphologically, the word is a built form whose named elements carry part of the historical sense. The current sense covers characteristic of animals; driven by instinct rather than reason. The wider family includes derived forms such as animalistically and related words such as animal, animalism, and animalist. ## Topics - Describing Qualities - Word Formation & Derivatives markdown