amnesiac
UK[æmˈniːziæk]US[æmˈniːʒiæk]
n
a person who has amnesia, a loss of memory.
adj
relating to or suffering from amnesia.
Morpheme Breakdown
a
mnes
iac
a
negative
mnes
memory
iac
pertaining to
Etymology
the word 'amnesiac' is built upon the greek noun 'amnēsia', meaning "forgetfulness". this, in turn, derives from the greek prefix 'a-' (meaning "without") combined with the root 'mnēmē' (memory), which is related to the verb 'mimnēskein' (to remember). the greek root 'mnēs-' can be traced back to the proto-indo-european root 'men-', meaning "to think", which is also the ancestor of words like 'mind', 'mental', and 'comment'. the english suffix '-iac', adopted via latin from greek '-iakos', converts the noun into an adjective or a noun denoting a person affected by a condition. thus, the literal construction "without memory" directly and logically defines the modern medical and general term for one suffering from memory loss.
Analysis
Structure: a (negative) + mnes (memory) + iac (pertaining to)
a-: a prefix of Greek origin meaning "without" or "not".
mnes-: from the greek root 'mnēs-', meaning "memory".
-iac: a suffix of greek origin, via latin, meaning "pertaining to" or "characterized by".
Examples
the car accident left him a complete amnesiac, unable to recall his own name.
she wrote a novel from the perspective of an amnesiac patient.
the amnesiac symptoms were temporary, and his memories gradually returned.