1828, "brutishness, state of being a (mere) animal; condition of being moved by sensual appetites as opposed to intellectual or moral forces," from animal + -ism. From 1857 as "the doctrine that man is a mere animal."

1660s, "youthful, boyish," a back-formation from puerility (q.v.), or else from French puéril (15c.), from Latin puerilis "boyish; childish," from puer "boy, child." The depreciative sense of "merely juvenile, immature, lacking intellectual force" is from 1680s.

"of or pertaining to the understanding, mental, intellectual," 1860, with -ic + Greek noēma "a perception, a thought," from noein "to see, perceive, have mental perception," from noos "mind, thought," which is of uncertain origin. Related: Noematical (1680s); noematically.

1550s, "cognizance, intellectual view;" 1580s in a physical sense, "range of sight;" from ken (v.), in the second sense perhaps via kenning (n.2) in the same sense in nautical use; both from PIE root *gno- "to know."

mid-14c., plesaunce, "the gratification or propitiation of God or some other deity;" late 14c., "satisfaction, enjoyment, delight; moral, spiritual, or intellectual satisfaction," from Old French plaisance "pleasure, delight, enjoyment," from plaisant "pleasant, pleasing, agreeable" (see pleasant).

1550s, "to be overtaken by darkness;" 1630s, "to involve with darkness," from be- + night. Figurative sense of "to involve in moral or intellectual darkness" is from c. 1600, and the word is rarely used now except in the form of the figurative past-participle adjective benighted.

1650s, "brightness," from French lucidité, from Late Latin luciditas, from Latin lucidus "light, bright, clear," from lucere "to shine," from PIE *louk-eyo-, suffixed (iterative) form of root *leuk- "light, brightness." Meaning "intellectual clarity, transparency of expression" is by 1851.

1864, "spot within one's range of vision but where one cannot see," from blind (adj.) + spot (n.). Of the point on the retina insensitive to light (where the optic nerve enters the eye), from 1872. The figurative use of the older sense (in reference to moral, intellectual, etc. sight) is by 1907.

in reference to character, style, trait, or idiom felt to be from the Oriental nations, 1769, from oriental + -ism. In the sense of "the West's patronizing representations of societies and peoples of Asia, North Africa, and the Middle East" it was popularized in the 1978 book of that name by Palestinian intellectual Edward W. Said. Related: Orientalist.

c. 1200, mesterie, maistrie, "state or condition of being a master, control, dominance," also "superiority, ascendancy, the upper hand, victory in war or a contest;" from Old French maistrie (Modern French maîtrise), from maistre "master" (see master (n.)). Meaning "intellectual command" (of a topic, art, etc.), "expert skill" is from c. 1300.