as in excitable
bringing about a relief from strong emotions usually by expressing them
It was very cathartic to finally tell my childhood bully exactly what I thought of him.
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as in drug
a substance used to induce or speed up the process of defecation
Epsom salts, when ingested, act as a cathartic.
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of cathartic
Stephanie Zacharek, Time, 6 June 2025
For some players, football will be cathartic — a release from dark thoughts.
—Andy Jones, New York Times, 6 July 2025
Molly Longman, refinery29.com, 11 Jan. 2021
See All Example Sentences for cathartic
Adjective
But the picture’s cartoonish brutality is cathartic.
—Stephanie Zacharek, Time, 6 June 2025
For some players, football will be cathartic — a release from dark thoughts.
—Andy Jones, New York Times, 6 July 2025
Noun
Some people find free-writing in a journal cathartic.
—Molly Longman, refinery29.com, 11 Jan. 2021
See All Example Sentences for cathartic
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cathartic
Adjective
-
Second, from a real-world perspective, if a dog is highly excitable or reactive, certain programming might overstimulate or stress them.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
17 July 2025
-
Choreographer Byron Easley is completely in synch with Goldstein’s excitable approach to this material.—
Christopher Arnott,
Hartford Courant,
14 July 2025
Noun
-
Among this new wave is a class of drugs called nitazenes.—
Christina Lengyel,
The Washington Examiner,
20 July 2025
-
The official cause of death was pneumonia, with complications from anemia and intoxication from legal drugs.—
Danny Horn,
EW.com,
19 July 2025
Adjective
-
Reducing Teen Obesity Through Stress-Informed Meal Design Faced with a surge in emotional eating and rising obesity rates among teens, one student tackled a deeply personal and widely neglected problem: The link between academic stress and chronic overeating.—
Karlo Tanjuakio,
Forbes.com,
15 July 2025
-
Set within a military institution, the film continues his exploration of gender and power, aiming to expose and humanize rigid, oppressive systems through personal and emotional storytelling.—
Anna Marie de la Fuente,
Variety,
15 July 2025
Noun
-
Sales of purgatives, tonics, syrups and patent medicines like Carter’s Little Liver Pills went through the roof as ordinary people were encouraged to closely monitor the frequency and quality of their bowel movements.—
Elsa Richardson,
TIME,
3 Oct. 2024
-
Or merely the tall-tale purgative of a frantic Purgatorian?—
Tom Nolan,
WSJ,
11 June 2021
Adjective
-
Replace apprehension with an exciting conversation about what’s possible, and then invest in training and skills development to help your talent thrive in the new AI era.—
Ronald Alepian,
Forbes.com,
16 July 2025
-
Known then and today by the nickname El Greco, his idiosyncratic painting (which appears to draw some on Byzantine traditions) still seems fresh and exciting.—
Jim Higgins,
jsonline.com,
15 July 2025
Noun
-
Each participant underwent a thorough preparation and intake process: screening for mental health conditions, medications, and trauma history, as well as virtual individual and group therapy sessions.—
Essence,
Essence,
22 July 2025
-
Over time, newer treatment medications were discovered, often with NIH research support, allowing a smaller daily pill burden.—
Timothy Holtz,
Sun Sentinel,
22 July 2025
Adjective
-
But Sandler had different advice about those making an impressive amount of cash.—
Stephanie Giang-Paunon,
FOXNews.com,
19 July 2025
-
And those are just a few concept highlights; there are plenty of others, including some impressive production vehicles.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
19 July 2025
Noun
-
The Deeper Question Oregon’s SB 951, by reinforcing the corporate practice of medicine doctrine, establishes regulatory guardrails to protect the patient-physician trust, potentially curbing excesses while sparking broader debates about the limits of state oversight in complex systems.—
Richard Menger MD MPA,
Forbes.com,
26 July 2025
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The array of meditative healing rituals and energy sessions, such as a medicine wheel ceremony, aura photography, past life regression session, hypnosis, and reiki, takes full advantage of local Sedona experts in these areas.—
Devorah Lev-Tov,
Travel + Leisure,
26 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Cathartic.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cathartic. Accessed 30 Jul. 2025.
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