Words are fun. They can be used to conjure powerful feelings, vivid imagery, and communicate complicated ideas. But the meanings of words aren't static: They can change over time and even from one context to the next.

The word nootropic is a perfect example. Once a word used to describe drugs that fit a strict set of criteria, its definition has broadened greatly over the past several decades. Even the way most people pronounce the word nootropic has changed!

In this post, we're going to look at the origin of the word nootropic and then look at how it's commonly used today. But first, let's take a look – or rather, a listen – at how to pronounce nootropic.

How To Pronounce Nootropic

The word nootropic was coined in 1972 by Corneliu Giurgea, a Romanian chemist and psychologist. He combined the Greek words for mind and to shape to create a word to describe a new class of drugs.

Traditionally, the word nootropic was pronounced to sound like no-a-trO-pic – four syllables. But over time, like many words, a syllable was lost and the pronunciation changed. Now and for the past decade or so, the vast majority of people have been pronouncing the word nootropic to sound like noo-trO-pic or, even more commonly, noo-trAW-pic.

The internet can quickly change the way words are pronounced. All it takes is one major influencer to say a word a certain way and then, before you know it, everyone's saying it like that. It's hard to know exactly when the pronunciation of nootropic changed, but it's likely been over past decade-or-so since interest in them has exploded.

The Original Definition of Nootropic

When Dr. Giurgea coined the term nootropic back in the 1970s, he established a strict set of criteria to define the word. After discovering the cognition-enhancing effects of piracetam, a substance Dr. Giurgea first synthesized in 1964, he wanted a word to describe those effects and the substances that provide them.

According to Dr. Giurgea, nootropics should do the following things:

1. Enhance memory and learning
2. Improve the way the brain works under disruptive conditions
3. Protect the brain against physical or chemical injuries
4. Improve cortical/subcortical neuronal control mechanisms
5. Possess few/no side effects and have extremely-low-to-no toxicity

As you can see, Dr. Giurgea laid out a set of 5 specific criteria to define what is and is not a nootropic. In a nutshell, they improve cognitive performance without causing any significant negative effects or neurotoxicity.

Drugs like piracetam fit this definition nicely but many other substances that we consider to be nootropics do not. Modafinil, one of the most popular smart drugs used today, certainly meets several of the criterion for being a nootropic. However, it doesn't meet all of them because, for some people, modafinil use can cause negative effects like insomnia, nausea, and anxiety. So if a substance meets some of the criterion but not all, can it really be considered a nootropic?

Over time Dr. Giurgea's original definition of nootropic changed, becoming more relaxed. Substances that he likely wouldn't have considered to be a nootropic – modafinil, for example – are now commonly defined as such. So let's take a look at how the word nootropic is used today.

The Modern Definition of Nootropic

Like many words, the definition of nootropic has changed over time. Once only used to describe substances that satisfied a particular set of criteria laid out by Dr. Giurgea, the word nootropic is now used to describe just about any cognition-enhancing substance.

The main difference between the traditional definition of nootropic and the modern one has to do with Dr. Giurgea's fifth criterion. He stated that nootropics should be virtually free of side effects and toxicity. But some of the substances considered to be nootropics today do in fact have the potential for neurotoxicity and side effects – sometimes serious ones.

An example of this would be the drug, Adderall (mixed amphetamine salts). There's no question about its ability to increase focus, motivation, energy, and boost productivity. But it comes with a whole list of potential side effects including insomnia, anxiety, twitching, mania, and even full-blown amphetamine psychosis. And high doses of Adderall are known to be neurotoxic.

By Dr. Giurgea's strict definition of nootropic, Adderall would not be considered one because of that fifth criterion: It isn't side-effect free. But many people in the nootropics community consider it to be one today because it's such a powerful cognitive enhancer.

So, how is the word nootropic defined today? According to Merriam-Webster, the word nootropic is defined as “a substance that enhances cognition and memory and facilitates learning.”

As you can see, there is no mention of side effects or neurotoxicity in that definition. Today, nootropics are simply defined as any substance that improves memory, learning, or cognition in general. This definition is much broader than Dr. Giurgea's and includes many more substances.

Drugs, supplements, plants, herbs, teas, and even flowers can all be nootropics. Things like Adderall, modafinil, and tons of other substances that wouldn't have been considered to be nootropics by Dr. Giurgea are now widely defined as such.

So, as the term is commonly used today, nootropics are simply any substance that have the capacity to improve memory, learning, and other aspects of cognitive performance.

The Difference Between Smart Drugs and Nootropics

People often ask if these mean the same thing or if they are defined differently. The terms smart drug and nootropic are frequently used interchangeably. Some people might make a distinction between the two, but most just use them to mean any substance that improves cognition.

The people who define the two differently will usually use smart drug to describe prescription medications like Adderall or modafinil and nootropic to define substances that fit a more traditional definition of the word like piracetam or aniracetam. But nowadays the vast majority of people just use both terms to mean the exact same thing: any substance that improves cognitive performance.

Conclusion

And now you should have a solid understanding of how to define and pronounce the word nootropic. Though the exact meaning of the word has changed with time, the underlying concept has not.

Today we can simply define nootropics as any substances that improve cognition. It's a short, concise definition that makes it easy to decide what is and what isn't a nootropic.

It's also the definition we generally tend to use here at the Nootropics Zone. If we used Dr. Giurgea's strict definition, we wouldn't have many cognitive enhancers to tell you about. Using the modern, more-liberal definition of the word nootropic, we're able to include dozens of cognition-enhancing substances.

How have you been pronouncing the word nootropic? And which definition – the modern one or the original one proposed by Corneliu Giurgea – do you find more suitable? Please leave your answer in the comments section at the bottom. And if you haven't already, please sign up for the NZ mailing list below to learn about dozens of interesting nootropics being used around the world today.

References

Here are some of the references used to write this post. They are listed in alphabetical order, not necessarily in the order they're used.

Giurgea, C. (1972). Pharmacology of integrative activity of the brain. Attempt at nootropic concept in psychopharmacology. Actualities Pharmacologiques, 25:115-56.

Giurgea, C., Greindl, M., & Preat, S. (1983). Nootropic drugs and aging. Acta Psychiatrica Belgica, 83(4):349-58.

Nootropic. (n.d.). Merriam-Webster Dictionary. Retrieved October 6, 2023 from https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/nootropic

Riga, D., Riga, S., Ardelean, A., & Cotoraci, C. (19 May, 2014). Prof. Dr. Corneliu Giurgea (1923-1995), the discoverer of piracetam and a new class of drugs in world therapy. Medica Academica.

Shorvon, S. (2001). Pyrrolidone derivatives. Lancet, 358(9296):1885-92.

[This post was originally published on August 16, 2018. Updated October 6, 2023.]