Frenzy
/ˈfɹɛn.zi/noun
A state of wild excitement or uncontrolled activity.
Did you know?The word ultimately comes from Greek *phren-* (“mind, diaphragm”), the same ancient root behind *schizophrenia* and *phrenology*, because early thinkers linked thought, breath, and emotion to the body’s inner seat of feeling.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*gʷʰren-
“to think; mind”
Ancient Greek
Greek
phrḗn (φρήν), phrenes (φρένες)
“the mind, the heart, the diaphragm; the seat of thought and feeling”
Late Latin
Latin
phrenēsis
“madness, frenzy; delirium”
Old French
Old French
frenesie
“madness, delirium, frenzy”
Middle English
English
frenesy
“madness, insanity; later, intense excitement or excitement of the passions”
Modern English
English
frenzy
“wild excitement or uncontrolled activity”
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