hysterical
hysterical Lexical Profile
hysterical Game Scores & Validity
• adjective
Affected by or deriving from wildly uncontrolled emotion, panic, or excitement.
"The crowd became hysterical when the stadium doors failed to open on time."
Extremely funny; provoking uncontrolled laughter (informal).
"Her impression of the eccentric professor was absolutely hysterical."
Relating to or characterized by conversion disorder (historically termed hysteria), in which psychological stress manifests as physical symptoms without an underlying organic cause.
"The neurologist determined that the patient's sudden loss of vision was a case of hysterical blindness."
Word Nuance & Usage
While 'hysterical' is widely used in casual speech to mean extremely funny, when applied to a person's emotional state—especially a woman's—it can carry dismissive or sexist connotations due to its historical association with a defunct psychiatric diagnosis.
• Rhymes for hysterical
• Nearby Words
Word Origin & Etymology
Borrowed in the early 17th century from Latin hystericus, from Ancient Greek hysterikos ('of the womb'), derived from hystera ('womb'), reflecting the ancient Greek medical belief that extreme emotional disturbances in women were caused by a wandering or malfunctioning uterus.