orgiastic
Americanadjective
-
of, relating to, or having the nature of an orgy.
- Synonyms:
- riotous, debauched, licentious, wanton
-
tending to arouse or excite unrestrained emotion.
orgiastic rhythms.
-
Sociology. (of an expressive crowd) reaching a peak of emotional intensity, often of an ecstatic nature and frequently expressed by uninhibited behavior.
Etymology
Origin of orgiastic
1690–1700; < Greek orgiastikós, derivative (with -tikos -tic ) of orgiázein to celebrate orgies (derivative of órgia secret rites; see orgy)
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.
“It’s the most frenzied event in golf” instead of “It’s the most orgiastic event in golf.”
From Washington Post ● Apr. 22, 2022
Anderson has inscribed a billet-doux to The New Yorker in its mid-20th-century glory years that is, at the same time, an ardent, almost orgiastic paean to the pleasures of print.
From New York Times ● Oct. 20, 2021
Meanwhile, business owners in Ischgl say they have been scapegoated and that reports of orgiastic scenes are gross exaggerations.
From The Guardian ● Sep. 5, 2020
But “fanatic” came to be associated with orgiastic rites and misplaced devotion, even demonic possession, and this may explain why fan behavior is often described using religious terms, such as “worship” and “idol.”
From The New Yorker ● Sep. 9, 2019
Though certain Attic women, under the frenzy of religious enthusiasm, would join the Delphian women in their wild rites of Dionysus, this orgiastic worship was never popular at Athens.
From Greek Women by Mitchell Carroll
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.
