Etymology

presence of mind

pres·ence of mind

Today it means: Focused alertness, good sense, quick-thinking resourcefulness, or stability of feeling and thought, especially in spite of circumstances which are distracting, stressful, or otherwise challenging. Full definition →

Latin praesentia animī
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The story

  1. Latin · calque ofpraesentia animī
  2. English todaypresence of mind

Calque of Latin praesentia animī, from praesentia (“state of being present, presence”) + animī (the genitive singular of animus (“intellect, mind”)).

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.