Synonyms for insanity
Most common
madness craziness lunacy derangement mental illness mania paranoia idiocy
All synonyms
Noun
madness, lunacy, craziness, derangement, idiocy, paranoia, mania, mental illness, mental disorder, delirium, hallucination, frenzy, alienation, aberration, distraction, dementia, insaneness, nonsanity, bedlamism dated, unsanity rare, disensanity dated, craze dated
Definitions
- n. 1
The state of being insane; madness.
The defendant pleaded insanity in the hope of getting a reduced sentence.
Related words
- Phrases
- masturbational insanity masturbatory insanity
- Is a kind of
- condition deviance disorder illness state
Forms
- Plural
- insanities → madnesses, lunacies, crazinesses, derangements…
Choose the right word
Lunacy originally denoted intermittent insanity, supposed to be dependent on the changes of the moon (L. Madness is the old popular term, now less common, for insanity in its widest sense, but with suggestion of excitement, akin to mania.
J. C. Fernald, English Synonyms and Antonyms (1914)
Example sentences
- madness Though this be madness, yet there is method in it.
- craziness I have had enough of the craziness of our lives.
- lunacy Don't succumb to lunacy too much, tomorrow is your wedding!
- mania Something about big cities triggers mania in me.
Popularity over time
| Word | 1850 → 2019 | Trend |
|---|---|---|
| insanity | steady | |
| madness | rising | |
| craziness | rising | |
| lunacy | steady | |
| derangement | falling |
Use in printed books, per decade from 1850 to 2019.
By length
- 5 letters
- mania3, craze1
- 6 letters
- frenzy2, lunacy3, idiocy4
- 7 letters
- madness2
- 8 letters
- dementia4, paranoia4, delirium4, unsanity
- 9 letters
- craziness3, nonsanity, bedlamism
- 10 letters
- alienation5, aberration4, insaneness
- 11 letters
- distraction3, derangement, disensanity
- 13 letters
- hallucination5
The small number after each word is its number of syllables (mania3 = 3 syllables).