frenetic

English

WOTD – 19 November 2009

Alternative forms

• phrenetic (dated)
• phrenetick (obsolete)
• phrentic, phrentick (obsolete)

Etymology

From Old French frenetike, from Latin phreneticus, from Ancient Greek φρενητικός (phrenētikós, “delirious”), from φρενῖτις (phrenîtis, “delirium”), from φρήν (phrḗn, “mind”). Compare frantic.

Pronunciation

• (UK, US) IPA^(key): /fɹəˈnɛt.ɪk/

• Audio (US)

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• Audio (AU)

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• Rhymes: -ɛtɪk

Adjective

frenetic (comparative more frenetic, superlative most frenetic)

1. Fast, harried; having extreme enthusiasm or energy.

   After a week of working at a frenetic pace, she was ready for Saturday.

2. (obsolete) Mentally deranged, insane.
3. (obsolete, medicine) Characterised by manifestations of delirium or madness.

Synonyms

• frantic, frenzied

Related terms

• frantic
• frenzy

Translations

fast, frantic, harried, or frenzied

• Catalan: frenètic
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 發狂的 (zh), 发狂的 (zh) (fākuáng de)

• Dutch: frenetiek (nl), bezeten (nl)
• Finnish: kiihkeä (fi), raivokas (fi), kuumeinen (fi)
• French: frénétique (fr)
• German: frenetisch (de), phrenetisch (obsolete)

• Hungarian: frenetikus
• Italian: frenetico (it)
• Norwegian: frenetisk
• Polish: szalony (pl), szaleńczy (pl)
• Portuguese: frenético (pt) m
• Russian: неи́стовый (ru) (neístovyj), безу́мный (ru) (bezúmnyj), бе́шеный (ru) (béšenyj), вне себя́ (ru) (vne sebjá)
• Spanish: frenético

Noun

frenetic (plural frenetics)

1. One who is frenetic.

Further reading

• frenetic in The Century Dictionary, The Century Co., New York, 1911
• frenetic at OneLook Dictionary Search

Anagrams

• infecter, reinfect