Word of the Day · Thursday, June 25, 2026
Eudaimonia
/yoo-die-MO-nee-uh/ · noun (Greek)
Human flourishing; the highest good, achieved through the active exercise of virtue over a complete life.
Where it comes from
From εὖ (eu, 'well') + δαίμων (daimōn, 'spirit, divinity'). Literally: 'good-spiritedness.' Often mistranslated as 'happiness' — Aristotle meant something closer to a life well-lived in accordance with virtue.
A small question
Aristotle famously argued that eudaimonia cannot be reduced to mere pleasure. Why not?