hectic
Americanadjective
adjective
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characterized by extreme activity or excitement
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associated with, peculiar to, or symptomatic of tuberculosis (esp in the phrases hectic fever, hectic flush )
noun
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a hectic fever or flush
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rare a person who is consumptive or who experiences a hectic fever or flush
Other Word Forms
- hectically adverb
- hecticly adverb
- hecticness noun
- nonhectic adjective
- nonhectically adverb
- unhectic adjective
- unhectically adverb
Etymology
Origin of hectic
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Late Latin hecticus, from Greek hektikós “habitual, consumptive,” adjective derivative of héxis “possession, state, habit,” equivalent to hech- (base of échein “to have, hold, keep”) + -sis -sis; replacing Middle English etyk, from Middle French
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.
Lorenze and Paul will have to manage the renovations of their new abode while also balancing the tennis pro’s hectic work schedule, which requires him to travel extensively for much of the year.
From MarketWatch • Apr. 8, 2026
Like many cafes in Hanoi’s Old Quarter, the circa-1946 Café Giảng slots into the hectic, colorful streetscape like a narrow paperback on a library shelf.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 17, 2026
Tax preparation is a seasonal business — and a hectic pressure cooker.
From MarketWatch • Mar. 13, 2026
The latter missed a glorious chance in the 88th minute, slicing wide when a deflected Gordon cross came to him, leaving Newcastle facing a hectic fixture list in February.
From Barron's • Jan. 28, 2026
Things were so hectic that Adam had dropped half his course load and was going to college part-time, and if things kept up at this rate, he was thinking of dropping out altogether.
From "If I Stay" by Gayle Forman
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.
