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delirium Definition

de·lir·ium (di lir′ē əm)

noun pl. -·i·ums or -·ia-ə

  1. a temporary state of extreme mental excitement, marked by restlessness, confused speech, and hallucinations: it sometimes occurs during a fever or in some forms of insanity
  2. uncontrollably wild excitement or emotion a delirium of joy

Etymology: L, madness < delirare, to rave, lit., to turn the furrow awry in plowing < de-, from + lira, a line, furrow: see list

delirium Synonyms

delirium

n.

madness, fever, hallucination, frenzy; see excitement, insanity 1. See syn. study at hysteria.

delirium Usage Examples

Converse of object

  • cause: It was a term he might use with a patient who is suffering from delirium caused by a high fever.
  • develop: Sleep disturbances and, ultimately, sleep-wake cycle reversals, can be early signs of a developing delirium.
  • include: This involved working to evidence-based pathways of care for mental health problems including delirium, dementia and depression.
  • suffer: Scientists, publishers and librarians all seem to suffer delirium when it comes to electronic publishing.
  • produce: Many remarkable instances occurred of people being attacked with the disease during a delirium thus produced, and from which the head never cleared.
  • call: Writing, deals with alienation provided by language; or what may be called the endless delirium of language.

Adjective modifier

  • excited: Produces a state of excited delirium - extreme highs and lows.
  • alcoholic: J. Russell Reynolds, Royal Physician, found treatment of alcoholic delirium with cannabis to be " very uncertain, but occasionally useful " .
  • violent: These lead to fits which in turn become delirium tremens or DTs - violent delirium with hallucinations.
  • little: Some of the members were quite keen on a little delirium.
  • such: According to the Harrogate Advertiser a storming rendition of Riverdance caused such delirium that the audience would not stop clapping.

Modifies a noun

  • tremens: He died of delirium tremens on 15th December 1848 at Looe Street, St Andrew, Plymouth, Devon.
  • tremor: I was just 20 years old and having delirium tremors; it was just awful.

Noun used with modifier

cue: Cue delirium from the City fans and an agitated inquest among the Ciren players.

Possessives

mathematician: Raymond Queneau: " An imagination which joins the mathematicians ' delirium to the poets ' logic.

Preposition: in

  • patient: References: Massie MJ, Holland J, Glass E: Delirium in terminally ill cancer patients.
  • person: Weinrich S, Sarna L: Delirium in the older person with cancer.

Preposition: of

  • fever: It is said that the first idea of the Prisons came to Piranesi in the delirium of fever.
  • joy: What rapture glad Would fill the soul, what blest delirium Of joy, could she burst through the veil that hides her doom!