extimacy

ex·tim·a·cy
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US, UK/ˈɛkstɪməsi/

noun

In the works of Jacques Lacan: the quality of being extimate.

OriginFrench extimité →
Scrabble 22
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Meanings

nounextimacy (countable and uncountable, plural extimacies)

plural extimacies

  1. countableuncountablehuman sciencesIn the works of Jacques Lacan: the quality of being extimate.

Origin

  1. Frenchextimité
  2. Englishextimacy

Calque of French extimité + English -cy (suffix forming nouns of condition, quality, or state). Extimité was coined by the French psychiatrist and psychoanalyst Jacques Lacan (1901–1981) in 1959–1960), probably from a blend of French externe (“external”) + intimité (“closeness, intimacy”). By surface analysis, extim(ate) + -acy.

More words from French

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

extimacy. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/extimacy

MLA

“extimacy.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/extimacy. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “extimacy,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/extimacy.

Source: extimacy on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.