hysteria

noun

hys·​te·​ria hi-ˈster-ē-ə How to pronounce hysteria (audio) -ˈstir- How to pronounce hysteria (audio)
1
: a psychoneurosis marked by emotional excitability and disturbances of the psychogenic, sensory, vasomotor, and visceral (see visceral sense 4) functions
2
: behavior exhibiting overwhelming or unmanageable fear or emotional excess
political hysteria
The plague had caused mass hysteria in the village.

Examples of hysteria in a Sentence

A few of the children began to scream, and soon they were all caught up in the hysteria. Wartime hysteria led to many unfair accusations of treachery. The spreading of the disease caused mass hysteria in the village.
Recent Examples on the Web Arrest warrants signal start of Salem witch trials The 17th century witchcraft hysteria that gripped colonial America began on a Leap Day with the issuance of arrest warrants for three women: Sarah Good, Sarah Osborne and Tituba. Eric Lagatta, USA TODAY, 29 Feb. 2024 Several states passed similar laws in the 1980s and ’90s, during the height of hysteria over satanic ritual abuse, but few, if any, prosecutions came from them. Brandy Zadrozny, NBC News, 23 Feb. 2024 The media hysteria and online frenzy have solely focused on the mayor’s statement. Niraj Warikoo, Detroit Free Press, 6 Feb. 2024 During the Covid mass hysteria and hypnosis, the Fogg shut longer than almost every museum in the country, but that’s on Harvard, not her. Brian T. Allen, National Review, 14 Dec. 2023 Yale worshipped fake science during the Covid mass hysteria and hypnosis. Brian T. Allen, National Review, 8 Feb. 2024 The images unleashed a fierce hysteria, with the internet vowing to #CancelBalenciaga. Nathan Taylor Pemberton, Rolling Stone, 20 Jan. 2024 Gone are the days in which Republicans can sit back and think no one is going to believe the Left’s hyperbolic hysteria. Christopher Tremoglie, Washington Examiner, 11 Jan. 2024 How hysteria can be organically real and terrifying and the consequences within any community can be tragically fatal. Los Angeles Times Staff, Los Angeles Times, 5 Jan. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'hysteria.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

New Latin, from English hysteric, adjective, from Latin hystericus, from Greek hysterikos, from hystera womb; from the Greek notion that hysteria was peculiar to women and caused by disturbances of the uterus

First Known Use

1772, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of hysteria was in 1772

Dictionary Entries Near hysteria

Cite this Entry

“Hysteria.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hysteria. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

hysteria

noun
hys·​te·​ria his-ˈter-ē-ə How to pronounce hysteria (audio) -ˈtir- How to pronounce hysteria (audio)
1
: a nervous disorder marked by excitability of the emotions
2
: unmanageable fear or outburst of emotion
hysterical adjective
hysterically adverb

Medical Definition

hysteria

noun
hys·​te·​ria his-ˈter-ē-ə How to pronounce hysteria (audio) -ˈtir- How to pronounce hysteria (audio)
1
a
: a psychoneurosis marked by emotional excitability and disturbances of the psychic, sensory, vasomotor, and visceral functions without an organic basis
b
: a similar condition in domestic animals
2
: behavior exhibiting overwhelming or unmanageable fear or emotional excess

More from Merriam-Webster on hysteria

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