MENTAL STATE

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 Dictionary entry overview: What does mental state mean? 

• MENTAL STATE (noun)
  The noun MENTAL STATE has 1 sense:

1. (psychology) a mental condition in which the qualities of a state are relatively constant even though the state itself may be dynamic

  Familiarity information: MENTAL STATE used as a noun is very rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• MENTAL STATE (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

(psychology) a mental condition in which the qualities of a state are relatively constant even though the state itself may be dynamic

Classified under:

Nouns denoting stable states of affairs

Synonyms:

mental condition; mental state; psychological condition; psychological state

Context example:

a manic state

Hypernyms ("mental state" is a kind of...):

condition; status (a state at a particular time)

Domain category:

psychological science; psychology (the science of mental life)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "mental state"):

identity crisis (distress and disorientation (especially in adolescence) resulting from conflicting pressures and uncertainty about one's self and one's role in society)

disassociation; dissociation (a state in which some integrated part of a person's life becomes separated from the rest of the personality and functions independently)

enchantment; spell; trance (a psychological state induced by (or as if induced by) a magical incantation)

annoyance; botheration; irritation; vexation (the psychological state of being irritated or annoyed)

elation (an exhilarating psychological state of pride and optimism; an absence of depression)

depression (a mental state characterized by a pessimistic sense of inadequacy and a despondent lack of activity)

agitation (a mental state of extreme emotional disturbance)

mental disease; mental illness; psychopathy (any disease of the mind; the psychological state of someone who has emotional or behavioral problems serious enough to require psychiatric intervention)

mental health (the psychological state of someone who is functioning at a satisfactory level of emotional and behavioral adjustment)

delusion; psychotic belief ((psychology) an erroneous belief that is held in the face of evidence to the contrary)

nerves; nervousness (an uneasy psychological state)

cognitive state; state of mind (the state of a person's cognitive processes)

hallucinosis (a mental state in which the person has continual hallucinations)

anxiety; anxiousness ((psychiatry) a relatively permanent state of worry and nervousness occurring in a variety of mental disorders, usually accompanied by compulsive behavior or attacks of panic)

morale (a state of individual psychological well-being based upon a sense of confidence and usefulness and purpose)

psychic trauma; trauma (an emotional wound or shock often having long-lasting effects)

fugue (a dreamlike state of altered consciousness that may last for hours or days)

hypnosis (a state that resembles sleep but that is induced by suggestion)

depersonalisation; depersonalization ((existentialism) a loss of personal identity; a feeling of being an anonymous cog in an impersonal social machine)

anhedonia (an inability to experience pleasure)

aboulia; abulia (a loss of will power)

frame of mind; state of mind (a temporary psychological state)

 Context examples 

A mental state in which one is not thinking clearly.

(Confusion, NCI Dictionary)

A mental state characterized by a lack of clear and orderly thought and behavior.

(Confusion, NCI Thesaurus)

A mental state marked by confusion about time, place, or who one is.

(Disorientation, NCI Dictionary)

That aspect of consciousness devoted to affect or feeling; a strong feeling, aroused mental state, or intense state of drive or unrest directed toward a definite object, with physiological, somatic, and behavioral components.

(Emotion, NCI Thesaurus)

Test codes of questionnaire questions associated with the mini-mental state examination (MMSE) for the Clinical Data Interchange Standards Consortium (CDISC) Standard Data Tabulation Model (SDTM).

(CDISC Questionnaire MMSE Test Code Terminology, NCI Thesaurus)

Test names of questionnaire questions associated with the mini-mental state examination (MMSE) for the Clinical Data Interchange Standards Consortium (CDISC) Standard Data Tabulation Model (SDTM).

(CDISC Questionnaire MMSE Test Name Terminology, NCI Thesaurus)

If simulation neurons don’t function properly, a person might not be able to relate very well to the mental states of others.

(‘Mindreading’ neurons simulate decisions of social partners, University of Cambridge)

Mothers who experience a persistently low or negative mental state due to clinical depression tend to have less interaction with their baby.

(Mothers’ and babies’ brains ‘more in tune’ when mother is happy, University of Cambridge)

Delirium is a condition that features rapidly changing mental states.

(Delirium, NIH)

It was an involuntary bristling on his part, the physical state that in the past had always accompanied the mental state produced in him by Lip-lip's bullying and persecution.

(White Fang, by Jack London)