hysteric

noun

hys·​ter·​ic hi-ˈster-ik 

1

: a person subject to or affected by hysteria

2

: an overemotional or unstable person

He's a sweet-natured hysteric who overresponds to every stimulus.

—Pauline Kael

see also hysterics

Examples of hysteric in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

This reversal of affect, with its excessive intensity, marks Dora as a hysteric. —Literary Hub, 22 Sep. 2025

The scene in the lobby yawed from hysteric to melancholic and back—hundreds of people surrounded by tote bags and dogs, trading rumors, bleak jokes, and fragments of actual news. —Dana Goodyear, New Yorker, 22 Sep. 2025

Viewer Reactions The Instagram video had amassed over 1.2 million views as of Monday, with viewers flooding the comment section with their hysterics. —Liz O'Connell, MSNBC Newsweek, 22 Sep. 2025

What’s the point of a university experience if the free exchange of ideas is buried under self-censorship or the censoring screams of hysterics who think words are literally violence? Dialogue and persuasion are the path to a richer and more civil future. —The Editorial Board, Oc Register, 21 Sep. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1654, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing hysteric

• anti-hysteric

Rhymes for hysteric

• chimeric
• dimeric
• generic
• homeric
• numeric
• allosteric
• amphoteric
• anomeric
• atmospheric
• chromospheric
• climacteric
• congeneric

Medical Definition

hysteric

noun

hys·​ter·​ic his-ˈter-ik 

: an individual subject to or affected by hysteria