frenzy

American  

[fren-zee] / ˈfrɛn zi /

noun

frenzies plural

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

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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

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verb

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

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• frenzily
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• frenzies
  plural

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; see phrenitis

Explanation

In a frenzy, people go into a state of hysteria. Stay away from hungry sharks or kids at a 16th birthday party when the pizza arrives if you don't want to get caught up in a feeding frenzy. Frenzy is derived from the Latin word phreneticus meaning "delirious." If you're in a frenzy, you're certainly delirious. You can be in a frenzy because something made you mad, happy, or even just hungry — whatever makes you so crazy you're not thinking clearly. Frenzy is often used when talking about a group of people (or animals) who get worked up at the same time about the same thing, like sharks near tasty fish or teenagers near pizza.

Example Sentences

But as the red-hot chip-stock rally sputters, even the biggest bulls are wondering how much longer the latest leg of the AI frenzy can last and where money might go as it fades.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jul. 4, 2026

Boutcher said the victims were "finding the current media frenzy and wild speculation incredibly difficult to handle".

From BBC • Jul. 2, 2026

The Eala mania mirrors the same kind of fan frenzy that Brazil’s 19-year-old Joao Fonseca has generated on the men’s tour.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 30, 2026

Still, there is less wild speculation right now than in the late 1990s tech frenzy, Fredberg said.

From Barron's • Jun. 26, 2026

The room was in a frenzy of girls removing their store smocks and fluffing their hair and putting on hats.

From "The Red Car to Hollywood" by Jennie Liu

Related Words

• burst
• craze
• excitement
• fever
• free-for-all
• furor
• fury
• hysteria
• madness
• mania
• outburst
• passion
• rage
• turmoil