Meanings
- uncountableLight tickling often accompanied by an itching sensation.
2017, Etymologist Susie Dent, appearing on "Would I Lie To You" Series 11, Episode 4, broadcast on 11 December 2017. "My dad once broke my leg during a particularly vigorous bout of gargalesis... or the light kind which is called knismesis."
2 more examples
Pending a better nomenclature we suggest for the former the term knismesis and for the latter the term gargalesis, with the adjectives knismic and gargalic, hyperknismesis and hyper-gargalesis for excess, etc.
1897, G. Stanley Hall, Arthur Alliń, “The Psychology of Tickling, Laughing, and the Comic”, in The American Journal of Psychology, 9(1) (Oct., 1897), pp. 1-41One can readily elicit knismesis in oneself (this is easily demonstrated by dragging a fingernail lightly over one’s skin). However, one cannot produce gargalesis in oneself; the present investigation focuses on this peculiar fact.
1999, Christine R. Harris, Nicholas Christenfeld, “Can a machine tickle?”, in Psychonomic Bulletin & Review, 6(3) pp. 504-510
Origin
- Ancient Greekκνησμός“itching”
- Englishknismesis
From Ancient Greek κνησμός (knēsmós, “itching”) + -esis.
More words from Ancient Greek
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
knismesis. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/knismesis
“knismesis.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/knismesis. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “knismesis,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/knismesis.
Source: knismesis on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.