hedonistic (adj.)

1806, in reference to the Cyrenaic school of philosophy that deals with the ethics of pleasure; with -ist + Greek hēdone "pleasure, delight, enjoyment; a pleasure, a delight," which is related to hēdys "sweet" and cognate with Latin suavis, from PIE *swad-ona, suffixed form of root *swad- "sweet, pleasant" (see sweet (adj.)). Meaning "one who regards pleasure as the chief goal of life" is from 1854. A hedonist is properly the follower of any ethical system in which some sort of pleasure ranks as the highest good. The Epicurean identifies this pleasure with the practice of virtue.

Middle English -ik, -ick, word-forming element making adjectives, "having to do with, having the nature of, being, made of, caused by, similar to," from French -ique and directly from Latin -icus or from cognate Greek -ikos "in the manner of; pertaining to." From PIE adjective suffix *-(i)ko, which also yielded Slavic -isku, adjectival suffix indicating origin, the source of the -sky (Russian -skii) in many surnames. In chemistry, indicating a higher valence than names in -ous (first in benzoic, 1791).

In Middle English and after often spelled -ick, -ike, -ique. Variant forms in -ick (critick, ethick) were common in early Modern English and survived in English dictionaries into early 19c. This spelling was supported by Johnson but opposed by Webster, who prevailed.

"of or relating to pleasure," also, "of or having to do with the Cyrenaic school of philosophy," 1650s, from Greek hēdonikos "pleasurable," from hēdone "pleasure" (see hedonist).