Main Entry: hys·te·ria

Pronunciation: \his-ˈter-ē-ə, -ˈtir-\

Function: noun

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