psychosis

noun

psy·​cho·​sis sī-ˈkō-səs 

plural psychoses sī-ˈkō-ˌsēz 

: a serious mental illness (such as schizophrenia) characterized by defective or lost contact with reality often with hallucinations or delusions

Examples of psychosis in a Sentence

The patient suffers from some kind of psychosis.

Recent Examples on the Web

Several reports find psychosis among those who are addicted and could result in hallucinations, delusions and confusion. —Josh Kelly, Oklahoman, 26 Mar. 2026

That’s perhaps for the best, given the ongoing discussions surrounding AI psychosis, a troubling trend that has caused an alarming wave of mental health crises as the tech coaxes some users into spirals of paranoid and delusional behavior. —Victor Tangermann, Futurism, 26 Mar. 2026

The weed can induce psychosis and send people into bad, almost psychedelic trips that are scary. —Stuart Miller, Oc Register, 18 Mar. 2026

This stylish novel, full of sentence-level pyrotechnics and mad dashes through the Mojave, traces a new mother’s descent into what’s either rebirth or psychosis. —Brittany Allen, Literary Hub, 16 Mar. 2026

Word History

Etymology

New Latin

First Known Use

1847, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for psychosis

• cirrhosis
• fibrosis
• gliosis
• hypnosis
• ichthyosis
• ketosis
• kurtosis
• lordosis
• meiosis
• miosis
• mitosis
• mycosis

Kids Definition

psychosis

noun

psy·​cho·​sis sī-ˈkō-səs 

plural psychoses -ˈkō-ˌsēz 

: a serious mental illness marked by loss of or greatly lessened ability to test whether what one is thinking and feeling about the real world is really true

Medical Definition

psychosis

noun

psy·​cho·​sis sī-ˈkō-səs 

plural psychoses -ˌsēz 

: a serious mental illness (as schizophrenia) characterized by defective or lost contact with reality often with hallucinations or delusions