mayhem

[mey-hem, mey-uhm]

noun

1. Law.,  the crime of willfully inflicting a bodily injury on another so as to make the victim less capable of self-defense or, under modern statutes, so as to cripple or mutilate the victim.

2. random or deliberate violence or damage.

3. a state of rowdy disorder.

   Antagonisms between the various factions at the meeting finally boiled over, and mayhem ensued.

mayhem

/ ˈmeɪhɛm /

noun

1. law the wilful and unlawful infliction of injury upon a person, esp (formerly) the injuring or removing of a limb rendering him less capable of defending himself against attack

2. any violent destruction or confusion

Word History and Origins

Origin of mayhem¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English maheym, maim, from Anglo-French mahe(i)m, mahaim, from Germanic; akin to Middle High German meidem “gelding,” Old Norse meitha “to injure”; maim

Word History and Origins

Origin of mayhem¹

C15: from Anglo-French mahem injury, from Germanic; related to Icelandic meitha to hurt. See _maim

Example Sentences

But the Muschietti siblings add that they are also incorporating certain messages into the mayhem.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

He brushed off the threat of the slipstream from those behind on the long run to the first corner and dodged the mayhem that unfolded behind.

Read more on BBC

It’s wonderfully sincere and, strangely, one of the few things about Bronstein’s film — an anxious, honest triumph about motherhood and mayhem — that feels pleasant to watch.

Read more on Salon

The kids run the film, and supernatural mayhem ensues.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

He got them to 12th the following season with a side high on energy and togetherness despite Chansiri-inspired mayhem behind the scenes.

Read more on BBC

Related Words

• anarchy 
• commotion 
• destruction 
• fracas 
• havoc 
• pandemonium 
• violence