apoplexy

American  

[ap-uh-plek-see] / ˈæp əˌplɛk si /

noun

1. stroke.

2. a sudden, usually marked loss of bodily function due to rupture or occlusion of a blood vessel.

3. a hemorrhage into an organ cavity or tissue.

4. a state of extreme anger.

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apoplexy British  

/ ˈæpəˌplɛksɪ /

noun

1. sudden loss of consciousness, often followed by paralysis, caused by rupture or occlusion of a blood vessel in the brain

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Etymology

Origin of apoplexy

1350–1400; Middle English apoplexie < Late Latin < Greek, equivalent to apóplēkt ( os ) ( apoplectic ) + -ia -y ³

Example Sentences

The ease with which Levin moves from apoplexy to calm tells me that the rage is a rhetorical flourish that substitutes for the logic his arguments lack.

From Slate • Jun. 4, 2020

A few days after hearing about Mr. Pecker’s apoplexy, we were approached, verbally at first, with an offer.

From Salon • Feb. 7, 2019

“If you’re going to dismiss everything as a hoax, you’d better have something clear to replace it,” he said, his voice rising toward apoplexy.

From The New Yorker • May 30, 2018

In 1954, the Supreme Court’s school desegregation decision threw Southern segregationists into political apoplexy.

From New York Times • May 19, 2017

He looked, now, as if he bordered on apoplexy.

From "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?" by Philip K. Dick