Hypertext Webster Gateway: "hysteria"
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)
Hysteria \Hys*te"ri*a\, n. [NL.: cf. F. hyst['e]rie. See
{Hysteric}.] (Med.)
A nervous affection, occurring almost exclusively in women,
in which the emotional and reflex excitability is
exaggerated, and the will power correspondingly diminished,
so that the patient loses control over the emotions, becomes
the victim of imaginary sensations, and often falls into
paroxism or fits.
Note: The chief symptoms are convulsive, tossing movements of
the limbs and head, uncontrollable crying and laughing,
and a choking sensation as if a ball were lodged in the
throat. The affection presents the most varied
symptoms, often simulating those of the gravest
diseases, but generally curable by mental treatment
alone.
From WordNet (r) 1.7 (wn)
hysteria
n 1: state of violent mental agitation [syn: {craze}, {delirium},
{frenzy}, {fury}]
2: excessive or uncontrollable fear
3: neurotic disorder characterized by violent emotional
outbreaks and disturbances of sensory and motor functions
[syn: {hysterical neurosis}]
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