gold fever
Americannoun
Etymology
Origin of gold fever
First recorded in 1840–50
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.
Across the continent, gold fever helped San Francisco vault onto the top-10 list in 1870.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 1, 2026
The pockmarked earth on Johannesburg's eastern fringe, until last week a humble cattle kraal ringed with barbed wire, now stands as the unlikely centre of South Africa's latest gold fever.
From Barron's ● Feb. 16, 2026
California has been a beacon, a destination, a paradise and promised land ever since its headlong expansion in a rush of gold fever.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 18, 2024
Rangel’s eyes stared hawklike on his swishing pan as he told how he caught gold fever.
From Seattle Times ● Aug. 9, 2017
It was in the time of the Black Hills excitement, when railroad men struck by the gold fever were abandoning their trains, even at way-stations, and striking across the divide for Clark's crossing.
From The Nerve of Foley And Other Railroad Stories by Spearman, Frank H. (Frank Hamilton)
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.
