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Stockholm syndrome
noun
Stock·holm syndrome
ˈstäk-ˌhō(l)m-
: the psychological tendency of a hostage to bond with, identify with, or sympathize with his or her captor
Examples of Stockholm syndrome in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Because, if so, maybe this was all just Stockholm syndrome.
—Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 19 Sep. 2024
This American version of Stockholm syndrome gets twisted by Rock’s sarcastic approach to political contempt.
—Armond White, National Review, 23 Oct. 2024
Russians are collectively experiencing a version of Stockholm syndrome, sympathizing more with their own captor than with his other victims.
—Andrei Kolesnikov, Foreign Affairs, 18 Apr. 2022
Familiarity over six hours possibly breeds, if not contentment, at least some kind of cinematic Stockholm syndrome.
—Leslie Felperin, The Hollywood Reporter, 7 Sep. 2024
Those civilians who support them suffer from Stockholm syndrome, which is understandable.
—Annabelle Timsit, Washington Post, 12 Oct. 2023
Reservations about Palantir were further exacerbated when Peter Thiel, billionaire cofounder and chairman on Palantir’s board, compared Britain’s obsession with the NHS to Stockholm syndrome.
—WIRED, 21 Sep. 2023
The bizarre tale of a kidnapping attempt, the German kaiser and a beloved ashtray
Bejerot, the consulting psychiatrist, is credited with coining Stockholm syndrome that year to describe the phenomenon of captives developing emotional bonds with their captors.
—Donald Beaulieu, Washington Post, 23 Aug. 2023
The foundations of He Went That Way would appear to promise a movie with curiosity, tension, volatility and perhaps even the kind of improbable bonding that can grow out of Stockholm syndrome.
—David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 9 June 2023
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Word History
Etymology
from a 1973 robbery attempt in Stockholm, Sweden, during which bank employees held hostage developed sympathetic feelings toward their captors
First Known Use
1978, in the meaning defined above
Time Traveler
The first known use of Stockholm syndrome was
in 1978
Dictionary Entries Near Stockholm syndrome
Cite this Entry
“Stockholm syndrome.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Stockholm%20syndrome. Accessed 26 Nov. 2024.
Medical Definition
Stockholm syndrome
noun
Stock·holm syndrome
ˈstäk-ˌhō(l)m-
: the psychological tendency of a hostage to bond with, identify with, or sympathize with his or her captor
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