schizophrenia

noun

schizo·​phre·​nia ˌskit-sə-ˈfrē-nē-ə 

1

medical : a mental illness that is characterized by disturbances in thought (such as delusions), perception (such as hallucinations), and behavior (such as disorganized speech or catatonic behavior), by a loss of emotional responsiveness and extreme apathy, and by noticeable deterioration in the level of functioning in everyday life

Note: Schizophrenia often involves an inability to orient oneself with reality, a withdrawal from social interactions, and a failure to integrate thoughts with emotions so that emotional expression is inappropriate. There are several subtypes of schizophrenia, including paranoid schizophrenia and those types marked by catatonia or hebephrenia.

2

: contradictory or antagonistic qualities or attitudes

both parties … have exhibited schizophrenia over the desired outcome

—Elizabeth Drew

schizophrenic

ˌskit-sə-ˈfre-nik 

adjective or noun

schizophrenically

ˌskit-sə-ˈfre-ni-k(ə-)lē 

adverb

Examples of schizophrenia in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Recent research has looked at its potential benefits, in very low doses, for treatment of depression, schizophrenia and Alzheimer's disease. —New Atlas, 23 June 2025

This policy is particularly dangerous for people living with schizophrenia, a condition that can profoundly impair a person’s ability to function in daily life. —Carali McLean, The Orlando Sentinel, 23 June 2025

Irene’s husband has since died, and her 17-year-old son, Joe (Lawrence Shou), who has been diagnosed with schizophrenia, hasn’t been the same since. —Peter Debruge, Variety, 6 June 2025

This might have helped the film more forcefully counter the assumption that schizophrenia, or other mental health issues of its kind, causes violent tendencies. —Lovia Gyarkye, HollywoodReporter, 6 June 2025

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from German Schizophrenie, from schizo- schizo- + Greek phren-, phrḗn "midriff, seat of the passions, mind, wits" + German -ie -ia entry 1, after Hebephrenie hebephrenia, Paraphrenie "mental illness with delusional symptoms" — more at frenetic

Note: The German term was introduced by the Swiss psychiatrist Eugen Bleuler (1857-1939) in a lecture, "Die Prognose der Dementia Praecox (Schizophreniegruppe)," given at the annual meeting of the Deutsche Verein für Psychiatrie (German Union for Psychiatry) in Berlin on April 24, 1908. The text of the lecture, augmented by restorations abbreviated from the oral presentation, was published in the Allgemeine Zeitschrift für Psychiatrie und psychisch-gerichtliche Medizin, 56. Band (1908), pp. 436-64. The word is introduced in Bleuler's opening remarks: "Im Interesse der Diskussion möchte ich nochmals hervorheben, dass es sich bei dem Kräpelinschen Dementia praecox weder um eine notwendige Dementia, noch um eine notwendige Praecocitas handelt. Aus diesem Grunde und weil man von dem Ausdruck Dementia praecox keine adjektivischen und substantivischen Weiterbildungen machen kann, erlaube ich mir, hier das Wort Schizophrenie zur Bezeichnung des Kräpelinschen Begriffes zu benützen. Ich glaube nämlich, dass die Zerreissung oder Spaltung der psychischen Funktionen ein hervorragendes Symptom der ganzen Gruppe sei, und werde dies am anderen Orte begründen." ("In the interests of discussion I would like to emphasize once again that Kraepelin's dementia praecox is neither necessarily a form of dementia, nor a matter of early onset. On this basis, and because it is not possible to derive further adjectives or nouns from the expression dementia praecox, I allow myself here to employ the word schizophrenia to designate Kraepelin's concept. I believe that the tearing apart or splitting of psychic functions is a prominent symptom of the whole group, as I will substantiate elsewhere.") — The pronunciation of -z- as /ts/ presumably reflects the influence of the German source.

First Known Use

1908, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing schizophrenia

• anti-schizophrenia
• paranoid schizophrenia

Rhymes for schizophrenia

• asthenia
• eugenia
• lacinia
• puccinia
• robinia
• vaccinia
• yersinia
• iphigenia
• leucopenia
• leukopenia
• myasthenia
• neurasthenia

Kids Definition

schizophrenia

noun

schizo·​phre·​nia ˌskit-sə-ˈfrē-nē-ə 

: a serious mental illness that is a psychosis and is characterized by a distorted view and understanding of the real world, by greatly reduced ability to carry out one's daily tasks, and by abnormal ways of thinking, feeling, and behaving

Medical Definition

schizophrenia

noun

schizo·​phre·​nia ˌskit-sə-ˈfrē-nē-ə 

: a mental illness that is characterized by disturbances in thought (as delusions), perception (as hallucinations), and behavior (as disorganized speech or catatonic behavior), by a loss of emotional responsiveness and extreme apathy, and by noticeable deterioration in the level of functioning in everyday life

Note: Schizophrenia often involves an inability to orient oneself with reality, a withdrawal from social interactions, and a failure to integrate thoughts with emotions so that emotional expression is inappropriate. There are several subtypes of schizophrenia, including paranoid schizophrenia and those types marked by catatonia or hebephrenia.