frenetic

English

WOTD – 19 November 2009

Alternative forms

• phrenetic (dated)
• phrenetick (obsolete)
• phrentic, phrentick (obsolete)

Etymology

From Middle English frenetik (also frentik, frentyk, frantike > modern English frantic), from Old French frenetike, from Latin phreneticus, from Ancient Greek φρενητικός (phrenētikós, “delirious”), from φρενῖτις (phrenîtis, “delirium”), from φρήν (phrḗn, “mind”). Doublet of frantic and phrenitic.

Etymologically, initial stress would be expected (compare the syncopic form phrentic); the modern pronunciation with stress on the second syllable is due to the influence of other words ending in -etic such as phonetic and sympathetic.

Pronunciation

• (UK, US) IPA^(key): /fɹəˈnɛt.ɪk/
• (obsolete) IPA^(key): /ˈfɹɛ.nɪt.ɪk/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

• Audio (General Australian):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɛtɪk

Adjective

frenetic (comparative more frenetic, superlative most frenetic)

1. Frenzied and frantic, harried; having extreme enthusiasm or energy.

   After a week of working at a frenetic pace, she was ready for Saturday.

2. (obsolete) Mentally deranged, insane.
3. (obsolete, medicine) Characterised by manifestations of delirium or madness.

Synonyms

• frantic, frenzied

Related terms

• frantic
• frenzy
• schizophrenia

Translations

fast, frantic, harried, or frenzied

• Bulgarian: буен (bg) (buen), необуздан (bg) (neobuzdan)
• Catalan: frenètic (ca)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 發狂的／发狂的 (zh) (fākuáng de)

• Dutch: frenetiek (nl), bezeten (nl)
• Finnish: kiihkeä (fi), raivokas (fi), kuumeinen (fi)
• French: frénétique (fr)
• German: frenetisch (de), phrenetisch (obsolete)
• Hungarian: frenetikus (hu)
• Italian: frenetico (it)
• Norwegian: frenetisk
• Polish: szalony (pl), szaleńczy (pl)
• Portuguese: frenético (pt) m
• Russian: неи́стовый (ru) (neístovyj), безу́мный (ru) (bezúmnyj), бе́шеный (ru) (béšenyj), вне себя́ (ru) (vne sebjá)
• Spanish: frenético
• Turkish: hummalı (tr)

Noun

frenetic (plural frenetics)

1. One who is frenetic.

Further reading

• “frenetic”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.
• “frenetic”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.

Anagrams

• infecter, reinfect

Middle English

Adjective

frenetic

1. Alternative form of frenetik

Romanian

Etymology

Borrowed from French frénétique.

Adjective

frenetic m or n (feminine singular frenetică, masculine plural frenetici, feminine and neuter plural frenetice)

1. frenetic

Declension

		singular				plural
		masculine	neuter	feminine		masculine	neuter	feminine
nominative/ accusative	indefinite	frenetic		frenetică		frenetici	frenetice
	definite	freneticul		frenetica		freneticii	freneticele
genitive/ dative	indefinite	frenetic		frenetice		frenetici	frenetice
	definite	freneticului		freneticei		freneticilor	freneticelor