aoristic
/ˌeɪ.əˈrɪs.tɪk/
adjective
- Relating to or denoting a verb tense (especially in Greek grammar) that expresses a simple past action without indicating whether it was completed, ongoing, or repeated; also used more generally to describe something that is indefinite or not specific in time.
- Some linguists argue that English has an aoristic aspect in certain uses of the simple past.
- The historian's aoristic description of the battle left out any details about when exactly it started or ended.
- In ancient Greek, the aorist tense is used for simple past actions like 'he walked' without saying if it happened once or many times.
- Vague or indefinite in time; not fixed to a specific moment or period.
- The legend's aoristic setting made it feel timeless, as if it could have happened in any century.
- Her aoristic memories of childhood were more like feelings than clear dates or events.
- The artist's work has an aoristic quality, blending past and future into a single, undefined present.
Synonyms