Meaning & use
onanist
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Meaning
nouncountableformalold-fashionedrare
A dated or clinical word for a person who masturbates, taken from the name of the biblical figure Onan.
Grammar: Countable; rare today and found mostly in historical writing.
Nineteenth-century doctors used the word onanist when warning readers against the habit.
A historian noted that the term onanist appeared in many Victorian medical pamphlets.
Modern writers rarely use onanist, preferring plain or neutral language.
Word forms
| plural | onanists |
|---|
Common combinations
- accused of being an onanist
- Old texts often accused boys of being an onanist without any evidence.
- term onanist
- The term onanist is now seen as outdated.
- Victorian onanist
- The pamphlet described the so-called Victorian onanist as a danger to health.
- onanist in medical history
- The onanist in medical history was often blamed for illnesses with other causes.
Synonyms and how they differ
- masturbator
- Masturbator is the plain modern term and is clinical, whereas onanist sounds archaic and moralizing.
- self-abuser
- Self-abuser is an old and judgmental term that suggests disapproval, which onanist also often carried.
Word family
Commonly confused: onanist or anarchist?
onanist vs anarchist
Anarchist is a political word and has nothing to do with onanist despite the similar look.
Practice
What kind of word is onanist in modern English?
Choose one answer.
Onanist is old-fashioned and clinical, found mainly in historical texts. It is not common speech, and it has no musical or sporting meaning.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “onanist”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.