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Synonyms

frenzy

American  
[fren-zee] / ˈfrɛn zi /

noun

plural

frenzies

  1. a state of extreme mental agitation or wild excitement.

    There's something big businesses love about working their customers into a frenzy of anticipation.
    Antonyms:
    calm

  2. a burst of agitated, energetic action or activity.

    Athens in the late 1960s was in the midst of a building frenzy.

  3. a fit or spell of mental derangement; a paroxysm characteristic of or resulting from a mania.

    He is subject to these frenzies several times a year.
    Synonyms:
    raving, fury, rage, aberration, lunacy, insanity, madness
    Antonyms:
    sanity

verb (used with object)

frenzied, frenzying

  1. to drive into a frenzy; make frantic.

    She was frenzied by fear when she smelled the smoke.
frenzy British  
/ ˈfrɛnzɪ /

noun

  1. violent mental derangement

  2. wild excitement or agitation; distraction

  3. a bout of wild or agitated activity

    a frenzy of preparations
"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

verb

  1. (tr) to make frantic; drive into a frenzy

"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

Other Word Forms

  • frenzily adverb

Etymology

Origin of frenzy

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English frenesie, from Old French, from Late Latin phrenēsis, from Late Greek, for Greek phrenîtis; phrenitis

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’s long resented her inability to contain the frenzy surrounding the Jeffrey Epstein files.

From Slate • Apr. 4, 2026

Daymen and Arienne Williams experienced the frenzy firsthand.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 3, 2026

That doesn’t account for the investment frenzy that is expected to come with SpaceX’s initial public offering, loosely slated for this summer, which experts say will further put a spotlight on the space sector.

From MarketWatch • Mar. 31, 2026

So while there’s a frenzy to try to invest in SpaceX—as well as Anthropic and OpenAI—before the public offering, investors have to be extremely careful.

From Barron's • Mar. 25, 2026

Mollie had been ten years old when the oil was first discovered, had witnessed, firsthand, the ensuing frenzy.

From "Killers of the Flower Moon" by David Grann

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.