nervous breakdown

See synonyms for nervous breakdown on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. (not in technical use) any disabling mental disorder requiring treatment.

Origin of nervous breakdown

1
An Americanism dating back to 1900–05

Words Nearby nervous breakdown

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use nervous breakdown in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for nervous breakdown

nervous breakdown

noun
  1. any mental illness not primarily of organic origin in which the patient ceases to function properly, often accompanied by severely impaired concentration, anxiety, insomnia, and lack of self-esteem; used esp of episodes of depression

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012