Madden
/ˈmæd.ən/noun
To make someone angry or insane; to irritate intensely.
Did you know?In Middle English, forms of this word could mean not just “annoy,” but “make mad,” showing how emotion and insanity were once linguistically tangled together.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Germanic
PGmc
*mōdaz
“mind, spirit, courage, anger”
Old English
OE
gemǣd
“mad, insane, foolish”
Middle English
ME
madden
“to make mad; to drive insane”
14th Century
English
madden
“to enrage, irritate, or drive to frenzy”
Modern English
English
madden
“to make someone very angry or mentally agitated”