buck fever
Americannoun
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nervous excitement of an inexperienced hunter upon the approach of game.
-
any nervous excitement preceding a new experience.
noun
Etymology
Origin of buck fever
An Americanism dating back to 1835–45
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
He writes, “ … it’s not that I fear buck fever, it’s that I can’t seem to work up a decent feeling of enmity toward a deer.”
From Seattle Times • Jul. 14, 2023
Don’t let buck fever cause you to freeze up during the Slate News Quiz.
From Slate • Jul. 23, 2021
The War Department increased the general buck fever by asking editors and publishers not to bannerize bombing raids, asking columnists to be casual.
From Time Magazine Archive
But add a pinch of buck fever, or try it when you�re out of breath, and hitting that plate becomes more like trying to hit a dime.
From Time Magazine Archive
With so much at stake Tom felt for the second time in his life the palsy that goes with buck fever.
From Man Size by Raine, William MacLeod
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
