hysteric

[ hi-ster-ik ]

/ hɪˈstɛr ɪk /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR hysteric ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

Usually hysterics. a fit of uncontrollable laughter or weeping; hysteria.

a person subject to hysteria.

adjective

hysterical.

Nearby words

hysteresis, hysteresis loop, hysteresis loss, hystereurysis, hysteria, hysteric, hysterical, hysterical personality, hysterical psychosis, hysterics, hystero-

Origin of 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

Related forms

an·ti·hys·ter·ic, noun, adjective

Can be confused

hysterics histrionics

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for hysterics

“I have a horror of hysterics or sentimentality,” he explained.
The GOP’s Last Identity Crisis Remade U.S. Politics|Michael Wolraich|July 24, 2014|DAILY BEAST
And as soon as James yelled “cut,” they both burst into hysterics.
Exclusive: A Photo Essay on the Making of ‘The Spectacular Now’|Michael H. Weber, Scott Neustadter|August 8, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Though she prefers the phrase “going away” to the word “jail,” which sent her into hysterics in a recent episode.
Teresa Giudice’s Crazy ‘Real Housewives of New Jersey’ Journey|Stacey Grenrock Woods|July 11, 2012|DAILY BEAST
The Newsroom transforms its female characters into hysterics and fools.
HBO’s ‘The Newsroom’: Aaron Sorkin’s Woman Problem|Jace Lacob, Maureen Ryan|July 2, 2012|DAILY BEAST

Back in 2007, a bubbly Diaz showed Jay Leno her burping skills on late-night TV and then went into hysterics.
9 Most Annoying Celebrity Laughers|Jaimie Etkin|October 28, 2011|DAILY BEAST
Bianchi rightly calls attention to the fact, that hysterics like to write anonymous letters.
Criminal Psychology|Hans Gross
You've got to let me go to bed and sleep, or I believe I'll have hysterics and yell the house down.
The Lion's Mouse|C. N. Williamson and A. M. Williamson
They have such a habit of hyperbole that most Irishmen smile at their hysterics and threats of civil war as at sheer fudge.
The Charm of Ireland|Burton Egbert Stevenson
And the cow whose calf had been taken the day before also went into hysterics.
The Red Cow and Her Friends|Peter McArthur
It even raged today, concealed in obscure sufferings, dissimulated under symptoms of headaches and bronchitis, hysterics and gout.
Against The Grain|Joris-Karl Huysmans

British Dictionary definitions for hysterics (1 of 2)

hysterics

/ (hɪˈstɛrɪks) /

noun (functioning as plural or singular)

an attack of hysteria

informal wild uncontrollable bursts of laughter

British Dictionary definitions for hysterics (2 of 2)

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

Medicine definitions for hysterics

hysteric

[ hĭ-stĕr′ĭk ]

n.

A person suffering from hysteria.

hysterics A fit of uncontrollable laughing or crying.

hysteric

noun

adjective

RELATED WORDS

Nearby words

Origin of hysteric

Related forms

Can be confused

Examples from the Web for hysterics

British Dictionary definitions for hysterics (1 of 2)

hysterics

noun (functioning as plural or singular)

British Dictionary definitions for hysterics (2 of 2)

hysteric

noun

adjective

Word Origin for hysteric

Medicine definitions for hysterics

hysteric

n.