bipolar disorder

American  

noun

Psychiatry.

• bipolar disorders
  plural

1. an affective disorder characterized by periods of mania alternating with periods of depression, usually interspersed with relatively long intervals of normal mood.

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bipolar disorder British  

noun

1. a mental health problem characterized by an alternation between extreme euphoria and deep depression

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bipolar disorder Scientific  

1. Any of several mood disorders usually characterized by periods of depression that alternate with mania.

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bipolar disorder Cultural  

1. Also known as manic-depressive illness. This psychiatric disorder is marked by periods of euphoric (manic) highs often followed by periods of depression.

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• bipolar disorders
  plural

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

bipolar disorder

Fredrik deBoer’s encounters with bipolar disorder began when he was 20 years old in 2002.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 2, 2026

“Paralyzed by Hope” is born out of Bamford’s bipolar disorder and her OCD, and it explores her and her family’s mental health issues in depth.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 20, 2026

At age 13, after one hour with a psychiatrist, she was told she had bipolar disorder, an incurable brain illness.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 30, 2026

And that new evidence of bipolar disorder, PTSD, and brain damage "mostly repeated" what the jury had heard and would not have changed the verdict.

From BBC ● Sep. 26, 2026

Later on, lithium would revolutionize the treatment of bipolar disorder, but the drug would not be licensed in the United States until 1970.

From "The Woman All Spies Fear" by Amy Butler Greenfield

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