- hormone
- 1905, from Gk. hormon "that which sets in motion," prp. of horman "impel, urge on," from horme "onset, impulse." Used by Hippocrates to denote a vital principle; modern meaning coined by Eng. physiologist Ernest Henry Starling (1866-1927). Jung used horme (1915) in ref. to hypothetical mental energy that drives unconscious activities and instincts.