hysterical

adjective

hys·​ter·​i·​cal hi-ˈster-i-kəl 

1

or less commonly hysteric

hi-ˈster-ik 

: 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

3

informal : very funny

a hysterical movie/joke

hysterically

hi-ˈster-i-k(ə-)lē 

adverb

Synonyms

• antic
• chucklesome
• comedic
• comic
• comical
• droll
• farcical
• funny
• hilarious
• humoristic
• humorous
• killing
• laughable
• ludicrous
• ridiculous
• riotous
• risible
• screaming
• sidesplitting
• uproarious

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

Their originals can be hysterical and their cover songs transformative. —Christopher Arnott, Hartford Courant, 12 Apr. 2025

The film adaptation of the incredibly popular video game, A Minecraft Movie fell flat with critics with 48% on Rotten Tomatoes, but has been met with hysterical audience reactions thanks to memes that spread online before the film’s release. —Dani Di Placido, Forbes.com, 9 Apr. 2025

With seven seasons of pure gold, Parks and Recreation served up everything from town hall shenanigans to hysterical dysfunction in the workplace, reminding us that staying true to your weirdness is the secret ingredient to keeping it all together. —Valerie Mesa, People.com, 9 Apr. 2025

Jesus, ain’t Ryan Gosling hysterical? —Anthony D'alessandro, Deadline, 5 Apr. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1603, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for hysterical

• chimerical
• numerical
• anticlerical
• hemispherical
• clerical
• spherical

Kids 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

hysterically

-i-k(ə-)lē 

adverb

Medical Definition

hysterical

adjective

hys·​ter·​i·​cal -ˈter-i-kəl 

variants also hysteric

-ˈter-ik 

: of, relating to, or marked by hysteria

during hysterical conditions various functions of the human body are disordered

—Morris Fishbein

hysterically

-i-k(ə-)lē 

adverb