gold fever
1
5.5
- noun
- /ɡoʊld ˈfiːvər/
:
fiebre del oro
- An uncle of R. U. Darby was caught by the "gold fever" in the gold-rush days and went west to dig and grow rich.
- catch gold fever
- get gold fever
Examples
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His adventurous spirit was ignited by gold fever, prompting him to join the miner's camp.
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These men have gold fever.
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'Gold fever drew them from every corner of the globe.'
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I hated to leave, but the gold fever got me packin'.
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They can't settle once they've got the gold fever.
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In 1848, Melville had read accounts of the gold fever in California and had written the start of the Gold Rush into Mardi.
Fiction book (2002) -
Their journey will take them across the lawless plains, to a frontier town gripped by gold fever, through feuds, duels, and massacres, and into unmapped mountains for a reckoning with ancient enemies.
Blog text (29) -
During the gold rush, many people experienced gold fever as they rushed to find fortune.
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The town was filled with excitement and gold fever when gold was discovered nearby.
Antonyms
How Excited
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning is a direct compositional extension: 'gold' (the metal) combined with 'fever' (a state of intense excitement) yields intense excitement or greed about gold. This 'X fever' pattern is a common metaphorical but transparent construction in English and other languages, so a B1 learner who knows both words would readily infer the MWE meaning.
Etymology
Gold fever comes from the image of a 'fever' spreading after people found gold. In old gold rushes, excitement and the wish to get rich spread through towns like an illness, with people rushing to dig for gold, so the phrase now means 'strong excitement and greed'.