ecstasy

[ ek-stuh-see ]
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noun,plural ec·sta·sies.
  1. rapturous delight.

  2. an overpowering emotion or exaltation; a state of sudden, intense feeling.

  1. the frenzy of poetic inspiration.

  2. mental transport or rapture from the contemplation of divine things.

  3. (often initial capital letter)Slang. MDMA.

Origin of ecstasy

1
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English extasie, from Middle French, from Medieval Latin extasis, from Greek ékstasis “displacement, trance,” equivalent to ek- ec- + stásis stasis

synonym study For ecstasy

2. Ecstasy, rapture, transport, exaltation share a sense of being taken or moved out of one's self or one's normal state, and entering a state of intensified or heightened feeling. Ecstasy suggests an intensification of emotion so powerful as to produce a trancelike dissociation from all but the single overpowering feeling: an ecstasy of rage, grief, love. Rapture shares the power of ecstasy but most often refers to an elevated sensation of bliss or delight, either carnal or spiritual: the rapture of first love. Transport, somewhat less extreme than either ecstasy or rapture, implies a strength of feeling that results in expression of some kind: They jumped up and down in a transport of delight. Exaltation refers to a heady sense of personal well-being so powerful that one is lifted above normal emotional levels and above normal people: wild exaltation at having finally broken the record.

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British Dictionary definitions for ecstasy

ecstasy

/ (ˈɛkstəsɪ) /


nounplural -sies
  1. (often plural) a state of exalted delight, joy, etc; rapture

  2. intense emotion of any kind: an ecstasy of rage

  1. psychol overpowering emotion characterized by loss of self-control and sometimes a temporary loss of consciousness: often associated with orgasm, religious mysticism, and the use of certain drugs

  2. archaic a state of prophetic inspiration, esp of poetic rapture

  3. slang 3,4-methylenedioxy-methamphetamine; MDMA: a powerful drug that acts as a stimulant and can produce hallucinations

Origin of ecstasy

1
C14: from Old French extasie, via Medieval Latin from Greek ekstasis displacement, trance, from existanai to displace, from ex- out + histanai to cause to stand

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