pixilated

American  

[pik-suh-ley-tid] / ˈpɪk səˌleɪ tɪd /

Sometimes pixillated

adjective

1. slightly eccentric or mentally disordered.

2. amusingly whimsical, prankish, silly, or the like.

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pixilated British  

/ ˈpɪksɪˌleɪtɪd /

adjective

1. eccentric or whimsical

2. slang drunk

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Other Word Forms

• pixilation noun

Etymology

Origin of pixilated

First recorded in 1840–50, pix(ie) + (tit)illated ( def. )

Explanation

Someone who's pixilated is a bit mischievous and eccentric, like the wacky man in your town who wears rainbow suspenders and breaks into pixilated dance routines in the middle of the library. It's easy to confuse pixilated with pixelated, which means "magnified so much that you can see each individual pixel." But instead of pixels, pixilated comes from pixies, the impish mythical spirits. Most experts believe that the word began as pixie-led, or "led astray by pixies." So if someone you know is acting as silly as if they're under the influence of pixies, you can call them pixilated.

Example Sentences

My world had abruptly, senselessly narrowed from a long list of projects and tasks and plans to a desperate need to take a few steps through this dizzy whirling pixilated excruciating pain.

From Salon • Sep. 25, 2021

But two sources reported pixilated images when their counterpart moved around.

From Reuters • May 24, 2021

The building game Minecraft has found its way onto devices around the world and into schools since 2009, letting players build elaborate structures out of pixilated blocks they mine.

From Washington Times • Jun. 18, 2020

The piece consists of more than 4,000 individual ceramic beads that are hung like a veil and give Ms. Spitzer’s already haunting image the appearance of being pixilated.

From New York Times • Oct. 23, 2019

When he looked behind him and saw a wobbling, pixilated mass of men doing their best to imitate a line, he barked, “Follow me, hogs. Follow your C.O. and that is an order.”

From "The Great Santini" by Pat Conroy