Meaning & use
equanimity
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Meaning
noununcountable
Mental calmness and emotional balance, especially when facing difficulty or stress.
Grammar: Uncountable; used with 'with' or 'in': She accepted the news with equanimity.
Patterns
- with equanimity
- in equanimity
- maintain equanimity
- accept something with equanimity
She faced the criticism with remarkable equanimity.
He accepted his defeat with equanimity.
The team maintained their equanimity despite the pressure.
Common combinations
- with equanimity
- She handled the emergency with equanimity.
- maintain equanimity
- It is hard to maintain equanimity when you are being criticized.
- accept something with equanimity
- He accepted the bad news with equanimity.
- face something with equanimity
- She faced the challenge with equanimity.
Synonyms and how they differ
- composure
- Composure is more about outward calmness and self-control; equanimity emphasizes inner balance and evenness of mind.
- serenity
- Serenity suggests deep peace and tranquility; equanimity is about staying calm under stress.
- calmness
- Calmness is a general word for being calm; equanimity is a formal, more specific term for mental steadiness in difficult situations.
Opposites
Word family
- equanimous adjective
- Calm and emotionally stable, especially under stress.
Commonly confused: equanimity or equality? equanimity or equilibrium?
equanimity vs equality
Equality means being equal in status or rights; equanimity means calmness of mind.
equanimity vs equilibrium
Equilibrium is a state of balance, often physical or chemical; equanimity is mental calmness.
Practice
She received the difficult news with surprising ___.
Choose one answer.
Equanimity means calmness and composure, which fits receiving difficult news. 'Equality' means being equal, 'equilibrium' means balance, and 'equation' is a mathematical statement.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “equanimity”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.