hysterical
adjective
hys·ter·i·cal
hi-ˈster-i-kəl 
1
or less commonly hysteric
: of, relating to, or marked by hysteria
hysterical conditions
2
: feeling or showing extreme and unrestrained emotion
hysterical fans
… the paper did not hesitate to appeal to racial passions in hysterical headlines and rabid editorials.—
The New Yorker
The New Yorker3
informal
: very funny
a hysterical movie/joke
Synonyms
Examples of hysterical in a Sentence
some of the things little kids come out with are hysterical
the police officer assured the mother that there was no need to get hysterical, for most missing children are found safe and sound
upon hearing the announcement that a shark had been sighted, hysterical beachgoers raced out of the water
Recent Examples on the Web
Surely this kind of apocalyptic, violent, uncontrollable, hysterical emotion – history changes always produce traumatic transitions – links the two historical moments.
—Georg Szalai, The Hollywood Reporter, 6 Aug. 2024
And Josh Kline extrapolates current climate-change conditions in a work of hysterical realism, with a wax sculpture of a house that slowly melts over the course of the show.
—Emily Watlington, ARTnews.com, 26 July 2024
Which is exactly what went down tonight in Hall H after the pic’s stars Ryan Reynolds, Hugh Jackman, Emma Corrin and the movie’s director/writer/producer Shawn Levy took the stage with Marvel Studios‘ Kevin Feige for a quick, hysterical chat.
—Natalie Sitek, Deadline, 25 July 2024
The Los Angeles Sparks rookie was still out of it from being sedated for her operation, which resulted in a handful of loopy and hysterical video clips.
—Natasha Dye, Peoplemag, 18 July 2024
See all Example Sentences for hysterical 
Georg Szalai, The Hollywood Reporter, 6 Aug. 2024
And Josh Kline extrapolates current climate-change conditions in a work of hysterical realism, with a wax sculpture of a house that slowly melts over the course of the show.
—Emily Watlington, ARTnews.com, 26 July 2024
Which is exactly what went down tonight in Hall H after the pic’s stars Ryan Reynolds, Hugh Jackman, Emma Corrin and the movie’s director/writer/producer Shawn Levy took the stage with Marvel Studios‘ Kevin Feige for a quick, hysterical chat.
—Natalie Sitek, Deadline, 25 July 2024
The Los Angeles Sparks rookie was still out of it from being sedated for her operation, which resulted in a handful of loopy and hysterical video clips.
—Natasha Dye, Peoplemag, 18 July 2024
See all Example Sentences for hysterical
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'hysterical.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near hysterical
Cite this Entry
“Hysterical.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hysterical. Accessed 19 Aug. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
hysterical
adjective
hys·ter·i·cal
his-ˈter-i-kəl
1
: of, relating to, or marked by hysteria
2
: feeling or showing unrestrained emotion
hysterical fans
3
informal
: very funny
Medical Definition
hysterical
adjective
hys·ter·i·cal
-ˈter-i-kəl
variants
also hysteric
: of, relating to, or marked by hysteria
during hysterical conditions various functions of the human body are disordered—Morris Fishbein
Morris FishbeinLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
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