hysteric

1650–60; <Latin hystericus<Greek hysterikós, suffering in the womb, hysterical (reflecting the Greeks' belief that hysteria was peculiar to women and caused by disturbances in the uterus); see hystero-, -ic

OTHER WORDS FROM hysteric

an·ti·hys·ter·ic, noun, adjective

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH hysteric

hysterics , histrionics

Words nearby hysteric

hysterectomy, hysteresis, hysteresis loop, hysteresis loss, hysteria, hysteric, hysterical, hysterically, hysterics, hystero-, hysterogenic

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use hysteric in a sentence

Think of the fearless suffragists, who were deemed hysteric.
Declared Insane for Speaking Up: The Dark American History of Silencing Women Through Psychiatry|Kate Moore|June 22, 2021|Time
Or, they could distort the contents of the bill and attack anyone who disagreed with them as a legal Luddite and hysteric.
Are Opponents of Arizona's Anti-Gay Law Eager to Deceive?|Kirsten Powers|March 3, 2014|DAILY BEAST
On Bates Motel, Vera Farmiga masterfully transforms a would-be harridan into a new kind of protagonist: the sensual hysteric.
‘Bates Motel’: Ken Tucker Praises Vera Farmiga’s Knife-Sharp Performance|Ken Tucker|May 6, 2013|DAILY BEAST
In short, he was still perfectly maintaining that biblical "is he a prophet, is he a hysteric" look.
For One Night, Larry Kramer's Not Angry|Jacob Bernstein|April 27, 2011|DAILY BEAST

The same holds true for the hysteric in whom also, of course, the subconscious takes hold of the inner life.
Psychotherapy|Hugo Mnsterberg
This was followed by a bustle among the servants, and screams as of a person in an hysteric fit.
The Blue Jar Story Book|Maria Edgeworth
There was a sort of glorying in its deep tone; it was not the hollow hysteric of shame and despair—it spoke a sanguine joyousness!
Night and Morning, Complete|Edward Bulwer-Lytton
Hysteric shudders were shaking her every few seconds, and her eyes were blinded with weeping.
In Connection with the De Willoughby Claim|Frances Hodgson Burnett
She laughed, as she said it, a little hysteric laugh, with suddenly moist eyes.
In Connection with the De Willoughby Claim|Frances Hodgson Burnett

British Dictionary definitions for hysteric

hysteric

/ (hɪˈstɛrɪk) /

noun

a hysterical person

adjective

hysterical

Word Origin for hysteric

C17: from Latin hystericus literally: of the womb, from Greek husterikos, from hustera the womb; from the belief that hysteria in women originated in disorders of the womb

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

hysteric

Origin of hysteric

OTHER WORDS FROM hysteric

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH hysteric

Words nearby hysteric

Words related to hysteric

How to use hysteric in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for hysteric

Word Origin for hysteric