-ism, -ismus

(Greek, ismos; Latin, ismus: a suffix: belief in, practice of, condition of, process, characteristic behavior or manner, abnormal state, distinctive feature or trait)

allochemical metamorphism
Metamorphism accompanied by addition or removal of material so that the bulk chemical composition of the rock is changed.
allochroic
Exhibiting color variation or having the ability to change color.
allomorphism
1. A change in form without a change in chemical constitution.
2. The property of certain chemical substances of occurring in different crystalline; forms; for example, calcium carbonate exists as calcite and as aragonite.
3. The property possessed by certain substances of assuming a different crystalline form while remaining unchanged in chemical constitution.
4. A variant phonological representation of a morpheme; such as, the final sounds of "bets" and "beds"; as well as, "horses" and "oxen" are allomorphs of the English plural morpheme.
allotheism (s) (noun) (no plural)
The worship of other or strange gods.
alteregoism (s) (noun), alteregoisms (pl)
1. An identification with people who have a similar personality to one's own.
2. Interest and sympathy for those who are in the same situation as, or are otherwise, similar to one's self.
altruism (s) (noun), altruisms (pl)
1. An attitude or way of behaving marked by unselfish concern for the welfare of others: After the earthquake, there were many who, out of a sense of altruism, volunteered to help the victims.
2. The belief that acting for the benefit of others is right and good: Pearl's cousin had a sense of altruism that motivated her to travel to developing countries to work as a teacher.
3. Etymology: from Latin alteri, a form of alter, "other, another".
Regard for the welfare of others.
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ambilingualism (s) (noun), ambilingualisms (pl)
A situation that exists when someone has virtually equal command of two languages: When Doris moved to Quebec, Canada, from France, her ambilingualism of French and English made it easy for her to communicate with the local citizens.
amebism
1. The ability to move by cytoplasmic streaming and the formation of pseudopodia, as in ameba.
2. Infection by amebas; amebiasis.
amillennialism (s) (noun) (no plural)
1. A religious belief that there is no millennium, neither figurative nor literal.
2. A figurative belief of what is called the "church age" during which Jesus literally will rule on the Earth after the church age; that is, Jesus will rule in the hearts and lives of the believers from the birth of the church until his Second Coming.
3. Etymology: from Greek a-, "no" + Latin millennium, "thousand years" = "no millennium".

During the millennium, persecution will continue, though Satan has no real power over the church because Christ already defeated him on Calvary.

The tribulation represents the church persecution throughout the millennium. At some point in the future, Jesus will return and initiate a final judgment and eternity.

It is believed that Christ is even now reigning or there is "nunc-millennialism" (nunc means "now") at the right hand of God over His church.

After this present age has ended, Christ will return and immediately usher the church into their eternal state after judging the wicked.

Eschatology is the study of the eschaton which is equated with "last things". While other views focus on the final days of humans on earth, amillennialism sees "the last things" as having been initiated at Christ's resurrection and so, being applicable from the earliest days of the Christian church.

From the amillennialist perspective, the whole of God's redemptive revelation is twofold: promise and fulfillment. It also emphasizes that a strict-literal interpretation of the Old Testament is not necessarily the most accurate way of determining what the text means.

amoebiasis, amebiasis; amebiosis, amebism; amebiosis
1. An infection or disease caused by pathogenic amebas; especially, Entamoeba histolytica.
2. Amoebae, or amebae, inhabit the large intestine, where they cause ulcers and inflammation which can mimic ulcerative colitis.
amorphism
A state of being amorphous; especially, a state of being without crystallization even in the minutest particles, as in glass, opal, etc.
amphierotism
A Condition in which a person is able to conceive of himself or herself as a male or female or both simultaneously.
amphigonadism
Possession of both ovarian and testicular tissue; true hermaphroditism.
amphoterism
The quality of exhibiting the characteristics of an acid and a base and having the capacity to react either as an acid or a base.
Anabaptism (s) (noun), Anabaptisms (pl) (nouns)
The advocacy of adult baptism on the grounds that only as adults can people responsibly accept and declare their faith: Anabaptism is a term given for those who practice re-baptizing mature Christian converts who already have been baptized as infants.

The churches of western Christendom that separated from the Roman Catholic Church during the Reformation resulting in some Protestant movements in the 16th century that believed that the Bible was the most important guidance for Christians and so some of them were practitioners of Anabaptism because they were convinced that only those who were old enough to make decisions to become baptized believers, and not infants, were the true believers.