| circumstantiality | A disturbance in the thought process, either voluntary or involuntary, in which one gives an excessive amount of detail (circumstances) that is often tangential, elaborate, and irrelevant, to avoid making a direct statement or answer to a question; observed in schizophrenia and in obsessional disorders. Compare: tangentiality. Origin: L. Circum-sto, pr. P. -stans, to stand around (05 Mar 2000) |
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