Bedlam Definition

bĕdləm
noun
A place or situation of noisy uproar and confusion.
American Heritage
An old insane asylum (in full, St. Mary of Bethlehem), later a hospital for the mentally ill, in London.
Webster's New World
An insane asylum.
American Heritage
Any insane asylum.
Webster's New World
Any place or condition of noise and confusion.
Webster's New World
Synonyms:
Antonyms:

Other Word Forms of Bedlam

Noun

Singular:
bedlam
Plural:
bedlams

Origin of Bedlam

  • From Bedlam, alternative name of the English lunatic asylum, Bethlem Royal Hospital (royal hospital from 1375, mental hospital from 1403) (earlier St Mary of Bethlehem outside Bishopsgate, hospice in existence from 1329, priory established 1247), sense used to mean “a place or situation of madness and chaos”. Bedlam as name of hospital attested 1450.

    From Wiktionary

  • Phonologically, corruption of Bethlem, itself a corruption of Bethlehem (“a biblical town”), from the Ancient Greek Βηθλεέμ (Bēthleem) from the Hebrew בּית לחם (bet léchem).

    From Wiktionary

  • Middle English Bedlem Hospital of Saint Mary of Bethlehem , an institution in London for the mentally ill

    From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition

Find Similar Words

Find similar words to bedlam using the buttons below.

Words Starting With

Words Ending With

Unscrambles

bedlam