bedlam
bedlam Lexical Profile
bedlam Game Scores & Validity
• noun
A state or scene of wild uproar, frantic activity, and chaotic confusion.
"When the fire alarm went off during the final exam, absolute bedlam broke out in the lecture hall."
An archaic term for an asylum or psychiatric hospital for the care and confinement of the mentally ill.
"In eighteenth-century literature, characters suffering from severe madness were frequently threatened with confinement in a bedlam."
Word Origin & Etymology
Originally a colloquial Middle English pronunciation of Bethlehem, referring to the Hospital of St. Mary of Bethlehem in London, an institution founded in 1247 that became a notorious asylum for the mentally ill in the 14th century. By the 17th century, the hospital's nickname had entered general lowercase usage to denote any scene of chaotic uproar.
Usage Trend
Historical frequency of usage in published text.