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Glite Dictionary
epidemic hysteria

epidemic hysteria

8.8
A large group of people suddenly become very afraid and act without thinking, spreading quickly
  • noun
  • /ˌɛpɪˈdɛmɪk hɪˈstɪəriə/
  • Specialized
translation icon : histeria epidémica
  • Social media can sometimes accelerate the spread of epidemic hysteria by amplifying fear and rumors.

Examples

  • Reports of illness in the school led to an incident of epidemic hysteria among students and teachers.

  • A sudden outbreak of epidemic hysteria caused panic throughout the city.

  • The town experienced an outbreak of epidemic hysteria during the festival.

  • Many people fell victim to epidemic hysteria after the news spread.

  • A sudden outbreak of epidemic hysteria caused panic throughout the city.

  • Reports of illness in the school led to an incident of epidemic hysteria among students.

  • The town experienced an outbreak of epidemic hysteria during the festival.

Synonyms

panic
vsepidemic hysteria
394 2.7

A sudden strong feeling of fear that makes you lose control

involves wider irrational agitation that spreads among many people
hysteria
vsepidemic hysteria
82 6.1

An extreme, uncontrolled feeling of fear or excitement

occurs widely across a community and spreads among many people
mass hysteria
vsepidemic hysteria
11 6.1

Many people feel strong fear and act in a panicked, irrational way

spreads quickly through the community rather than appearing slowly

How Intense

epidemic hysteria
  • Specialized
8.8
panic
394 2.7
alarm
159 2.3
unease
19 4.4
calm
52 1.0

Surface Forms

epidemic hysteria singular
epidemic hysterias plural

Morphology

epidemic + hysteria

The meaning is directly compositional: 'epidemic' conveys ‘widespread’ and 'hysteria' denotes extreme collective emotional reaction, so the phrase simply means widespread or community-wide hysteria. This modifier+noun pattern is regular and cross-linguistically common, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents can readily infer the MWE's meaning.

Etymology

Epidemic hysteria uses a clear image: epidemic is a disease that spreads fast, and hysteria is strong, unreasonable fear. When one person's 'panic' is copied by others and the fear 'spreads' through a town or group, you get 'epidemic hysteria', meaning many people showing the same extreme, often 'unreasonable' behavior.