equanimity

• æquanimity (archaic)

From French équanimité, from Latin aequanimitās (“calmness, equanimity”), from aequus (“even; calm; fair”) + animus (“mind, soul”) + -itās. By surface analysis, equ- +‎ animus +‎ -ity.

• IPA^(key): /ˌɛkwəˈnɪmɪtiː/, /ˌiːkwəˈnɪmɪtiː/

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equanimity (countable and uncountable, plural equanimities)

1. The state of being calm, stable and composed, especially under stress.
   • 1779, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, The Sorrows of Young Werther:

     No doubt you are right, my best of friends, there would be far less suffering amongst mankind, if men—and God knows why they are so fashioned—did not employ their imaginations so assiduously in recalling the memory of past sorrow, instead of bearing their present lot with equanimity.

   • 1954, Albert Einstein, Ideas and Opinions:

     Few people are capable of expressing with equanimity opinions which differ from the prejudices of their social environment.

   • 2023 October 6, Ryan Gilbey, “The double life of Rock Hudson: ‘Let’s be frank, he was a horndog!’”, in The Guardian‎, →ISSN:

     We find Hudson himself, a vision of unwavering equanimity, admitting that as a child he didn’t dare mention his acting dreams for fear they would be dismissed as “sissy stuff”.

• composure
• calmness
• even-mindedness
• See also Thesaurus:calm

• equanimous