Learn English – Difference between “empathetic” and “empathic”

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Apparently both words empathetic and empathic mean the same thing, yet I see one person refer to the specific type of writing as empathetic writing, while another empathic writing. Who's correct and why?

Best Answer

For better or worse, the meaning of the word empathic has been forever tainted by its use in the science fiction and fantasy realm -- I would avoid using it interchangeably with empathetic just to avoid the connotation of spooky action at a distance. "Correct" and "right" aren't interchangeable either -- using language correctly isn't right if it raises unnecessary misunderstanding.