My daughter and her BFF were debating how to spell the name of the grumbling old donkey from Winnie the Pooh. Would you know? It’s tricky. Try it right now. I can wait.
While looking up the spelling of Eeyore (did you get it right?), I came across anhedonic. Hubby the doctor had to explain it to me, and as soon as he finished I shouted “WORD NERD WORD!”
For more word nerdy words, visit Kathy at Bermuda Onion. Every week she hosts the Wondrous Words Wednesday meme in which bloggers share posts about new words they’ve learned. Join the fun!
Wikipedia (mind you, I went there for spelling, not fact checking) describes Eeyore as:
a pessimistic, gloomy, depressed, anhedonic, old grey stuffed donkey who is a friend of the title character, Winnie-the-Pooh.
Anhedonic \an-hē-’dä-nik\ from Greek a- (without) + hēdonē = pleasure
- Characterized by an inability to experience pleasure in normally pleasurable acts
I should have guessed – the opposite of hedonism! Hubby says this is a medical term often used with patients who have depression.
Word Nerd Workout
Think of another anhedonic character from media or real life, or use anhedonic in 
a sentence.
I hate it when my friend Martha brings her anhedonic roommate out to dinner with us; she’s so pessimistic she makes my burger taste bad.
Your turn, and don’t forget to join in the Wondrous Words Wednesday meme.
Thanks for getting nerdy with me today!
I did spell Eeyore right but had no clue what anhedonic means. Alan Rickman played the anhedonic character of Professor Snape exceptionally well.
Sometimes I feel anhedonic, when I’m surrounded by gray skies.
I wish I’d had anhedonic in my vocabulary when my kids were young. They loved all of Christopher Robin’s friends – the stuffed animals, the books, the costumes – all of it. Whenever someone was being grumpy, etc., even the youngest one knew to go get Eeyore to use him to talk Mr. Grumpy into a better mood. I wish I could have renamed Eeyore Anhedonic. It fits.
There was a side character who showed up occasionally on the show Everybody Loves Raymond that could be described as anhedonic~ can’t remember his name, though! Perfect description for Eeyore, yet he remains so lovable 🙂
Great idea, Jessica! I think Raymond’s brother could be described as anhedonic – is that who you mean? Thanks for “playing”!
No, I meant someone else, but you’re right about his brother!