Building Your Power of Expression

Sublimate, v.

Pronunciation: ˈsəbləˌmāt

Meaning: To sublimate is to divert or modify (an instinctual impulse) into a culturally higher or socially more acceptable activity, such as to quell or suppress one’s darker impulses.

Usage:

• “My guess is he would tend to sublimate his hurt and anger into humor. ”
• “Freud believed that people often sublimate their basic instincts into socially acceptable behaviors.”
• “She tried to sublimate her frustration into creative energy by painting abstract art.”