mutism
Medical term for the inability or refusal to speak, often used in psychiatric or neurological contexts. The cross-referenced term 緘黙症 (かんもくしょう) is more common in clinical settings.
See also: 緘黙症
Mutism can refer to a condition in which a person has the ability to speak but does not.
Selective mutism and mutism are sometimes distinguished in medical literature.
Compound of 無言 (むごん, 'silence, without words') and 症 (しょう, 'symptom, condition'). The exact historical derivation is uncertain; the term appears to be a modern medical coinage.