febrile

American  

[fee-bruhl, feb-ruhl, fee-brahyl] / ˈfi brəl, ˈfɛb rəl, ˈfi braɪl /

adjective

1. pertaining to or marked by fever; feverish.

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febrile British  

/ ˈfiːbraɪl, fɪˈbrɪlɪtɪ /

adjective

1. of or relating to fever; feverish

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Usage

What does febrile mean? Febrile is a more formal way of saying feverish—having a fever.A fever is an abnormally high body temperature, typically as the result of illness. In general, febrile can mean somehow related to or marked by fever. It is commonly used in formal medical contexts, but it can also be used metaphorically to describe situations marked by a state of anxious excitement.Example: Nothing is worse than the febrile sweat that comes with the flu.

Other Word Forms

• febrility noun
• nonfebrile adjective
• postfebrile adjective
• unfebrile adjective

Etymology

Origin of febrile

1645–55; < New Latin, Medieval Latin febrīlis. See fever, -ile

Compare meaning

How does febrile compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• febrile vs. afebrile

Example Sentences

The rationale is understandable given the current febrile markets, they say.

From The Wall Street Journal

A pumped-up Volkanovski, a former rugby league player, basked in the adoration of the febrile 20,000-person crowd at Qudos Bank Arena in his first world title defence on Australian soil.

From Barron's

The revs are but an airy figment in your febrile mind.

From The Wall Street Journal

Teams always tend to be stronger in their own stadium, but there are those inside the Newcastle dressing room who believe St James' gives them an extra 10% when it's at its febrile best.

From BBC

Those who sued during that febrile and fractious period generated considerable anger among PGA Tour players, who felt money that belonged to them as members was being channelled into the pockets of lawyers instead.

From BBC