vis comica

noun

Comic force.

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Meanings

nounvis comica (uncountable)
  1. uncountableComic force.

    Also Steiner tells of someone who claimed that the comic elements comes about when someone has the vis comica, or "power of being comical." Again - the dormitive principle at work.

    2002, Bees by Rudolf Steiner, A Review by Bobby Matherne

Origin

Originating from an inaccurate interpretation of verses attributed to Julius Caesar: “Lenibus atque utinam scriptis adiuncta foret vis, Comica ut aequato virtus polleret honore Cum Graecis …”. An erroneous interpunction lead to mistaking cōmica as tied to vīs rather than to virtūs.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

vis comica. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/vis%20comica

MLA

“vis comica.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/vis%20comica. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “vis comica,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/vis%20comica.

Source: vis comica on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.