metabasis

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noun

A change from one subject to another.

OriginLate Latin metabasis ← Ancient Greek μετάβασις ← Proto-Indo-European *gʷem- →
Scrabble 13
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Meanings

nounmetabasis (plural metabases)

plural metabases

  1. rhetoricA change from one subject to another.
  2. medicineAny change in the course of a disease; metabola.

Origin

  1. Proto-Indo-European*gʷem-
  2. Ancient Greekμετάβασις“a change, a transition”
  3. Late Latinmetabasis
  4. Englishmetabasis

From Late Latin metabasis, from Ancient Greek μετάβασις (metábasis, “a change, a transition”), from μεταβαίνω (metabaínō, “I cross”), from μετά (metá) and βαίνω (baínō, “I move”), from Proto-Indo-European *gʷem-.

More words from Late Latin, Ancient Greek, Proto-Indo-European

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

French métabase
  • métabaseA change of subject
Italian metabasi
  • metabasiA change of subject
Spanish metábasis
  • metábasisA change of subject
Tagalog lipat
  • lipatA change of subject
Cite this entry
APA

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

MLA

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

Chicago

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

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