conniption

noun

con·nip·tion kə-ˈnip-shən

: a fit of rage, hysteria, or alarm

went into conniptions

He had a conniption when his favorite TV program was preempted by a political speech.

Example Sentences

Recent Examples on the Web Elsewhere, a potential voter took Terech’s packet of information but was unable to talk for long because his dog was having a conniption. —

Grace Segers, The New Republic, 25 Oct. 2022 That's 25 basis points more than Wall Street was counting on, and investors are a delicate bunch who tend to have a conniption when caught off guard. —

Allison Morrow, CNN, 21 Sep. 2022 The revelation that Luka Doncic and Kristaps Porzingis wouldn’t play Thursday night had just started to sink in, with some fans throwing a conniption on Twitter, when coach Rick Carlisle matter-of-factly delivered fair warning about the weeks ahead. —

Dallas News, 12 Mar. 2021 City residents and our leaders believe in science, don’t consider the virus a hoax and don’t have a conniption fit if a shopkeeper rightly reminds us to put on our mask. —

Heather Knight, SFChronicle.com, 23 June 2020 Music licensees can see some of that but are having conniptions at the possibilities that the decrees would eventually be sunsetted and licensing would then take place in a free market. —

Ed Christman, Billboard, 13 Sep. 2019 The issue might seem remote, amid the constant political conniptions that increasingly characterize the American news cycle, but an economic and military frontier on the moon and cislunar space is rapidly coming to the fore. —

Jack H. Burke, National Review, 13 June 2019 One last thing though: On Wednesday, the sports world was having conniptions about Casey winning Coach of the Year over the almighty Brad Stevens. —

Chris Chase, For The Win, 11 May 2018 But plans to rename it after him were scrapped when people in the town nearly had a conniption. —

Jacob Bernstein, New York Times, 5 May 2018 See More

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'conniption.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.