MENTALLY ILL


Meaning of MENTALLY ILL in English

INDEX:

1. mentally ill

2. mental illness

3. to become mentally ill

4. not mentally ill

RELATED WORDS

a doctor who treats people who are mentally ill : ↑ DOCTOR

a hospital for people who are mentally ill : ↑ HOSPITAL

see also

↑ CRAZY

↑ MIND

↑ ILLNESS/DISEASE

↑ CURE

↑ RECOVER

↑ MEDICAL TREATMENT

↑ DRUG

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1. mentally ill

▷ mentally ill /ˌment ə li ˈɪl/ [adjective phrase]

someone who is mentally ill has an illness of the mind which affects the way that they behave :

▪ Many of these homeless people have been mentally ill at some time.

the mentally ill

people who are mentally ill

▪ He works in a hostel for the mentally ill.

▷ mental /ˈmentl/ [adjective only before noun]

connected with mental illness or people who are mentally ill :

mental hospital/patient/institution

▪ a hospital ward for non-violent mental patients

mental problem/disorder/breakdown

▪ We knew she had been having mental problems.

▷ insane /ɪnˈseɪn/ [adjective] formal

permanently and seriously mentally ill, so that you cannot have a normal life - use this in legal contexts or in descriptions of people who lived in the past :

▪ The man, who has attacked 13 women, was judged to be insane.

go insane

become seriously mentally ill

▪ Sometimes I thought I was going insane.

▷ mad British crazy especially American /mæd, ˈkreɪzi/ [adjective]

mentally ill - use this in conversations or stories, but not in formal, medical, or legal English :

▪ We soon realized that the old man was completely mad.

▪ There’s this crazy woman in our town who eats glass.

go mad/crazy

▪ They say she went mad after her family were killed in a fire.

▷ unstable /ʌnˈsteɪb ə l/ [adjective]

if someone is unstable, their emotional state often changes very suddenly, and they are likely to become angry, violent etc :

▪ Working with Clare every day, I began to realize how unstable she was.

emotionally/mentally unstable

▪ He is emotionally unstable, and his aggressive attitude often culminates in violence.

▷ confused /kənˈfjuːzd/ [adjective]

an old person who is confused has become mentally ill so that they cannot remember things or think clearly :

▪ Aunt Clara had been so sharp, so witty, but now she is just a sad, confused old woman.

2. mental illness

▷ mental illness /ˌmentl ˈɪlnə̇s/ [countable/uncountable noun]

an illness of the mind :

▪ Depression is a mental illness and can often be treated with drugs.

▪ He had a history of mental illness and alcoholism.

suffer from (a) mental illness

▪ SANELINE is the first helpline for people suffering from mental illness.

▷ madness /ˈmædnɪs, ˈmædnəs/ [uncountable noun] especially British

serious and permanent mental illness - used especially in literature, but not used in official or medical contexts :

▪ By the end of the book, Peter’s addiction has led him to madness and suicide.

feign madness

pretend to be mad

▪ Some prisoners feigned madness so that they would be released.

▷ insanity /ɪnˈsænɪti, ɪnˈsænəti/ [uncountable noun] formal

serious and permanent mental illness - use this especially in legal contexts or in descriptions of people who lived in the past :

▪ Hearing voices inside your head is a common symptom of insanity.

▪ Hodge was found not guilty by reason of insanity.

▷ disorder /dɪsˈɔːʳdəʳ/ [countable noun] formal

a mental illness - used especially by doctors :

personality/mood disorder

▪ Children who suffer from personality disorders often receive little or no treatment until it’s too late.

psychiatric/mental disorder

▪ There was no evidence of her having a psychiatric disorder, although it was clear that she had become withdrawn since the breakup of her relationship.

▷ depression /dɪˈpreʃ ə n/ [uncountable noun]

a mental illness which makes you so anxious and unhappy that you cannot live a normal life :

suffer from depression

▪ He has been suffering from depression since his wife died last year.

deep/severe depression

▪ She suffers from periods of deep depression, when she locks herself away and will speak to no one for weeks.

▷ senility /sɪˈnɪlɪti, sɪˈnɪləti/ [uncountable noun]

a mental illness that affects old people and makes them unable to think clearly and become confused very easily :

▪ Of all the associated problems to do with getting old, senility is the one she dreads most.

3. to become mentally ill

▷ have a (nervous) breakdown /hæv ə (ˌnɜːʳvəs) ˈbreɪkdaʊn/ [verb phrase]

to become mentally ill, usually as a result of working too hard or difficult emotional problems, and be temporarily unable to deal with ordinary things such as working or looking after your family :

▪ After her divorce, Dora had a nervous breakdown and was off work for three months.

▪ She sounds really bad. I think she’s heading for a nervous breakdown.

▷ crack up /ˌkræk ˈʌp/ [intransitive phrasal verb] informal

to suddenly become unable to continue your normal life, especially because you have been working too hard or doing something that is very frightening, dangerous etc :

▪ I think Paul’s cracking up under the strain of work.

▪ Some people can’t cope with the death of a loved one, and simply crack up.

▷ go insane also go mad British /go crazy especially American /gəʊ ɪnˈseɪn, gəʊ ˈmæd, gəʊ ˈkreɪzi/ [verb phrase]

to become seriously and permanently mentally ill - used in ordinary English, but not official or medical contexts :

▪ Eventually, rejected by Hamlet, Ophelia goes mad and drowns herself.

▪ I wondered if I was going crazy. Everyone seemed to be against me.

▪ Conditions on the oil rig are very unpleasant. You’d go insane if you had to stay more than a month or so.

4. not mentally ill

▷ sane /seɪn/ [adjective]

not mentally ill, so that you are able to make sensible decisions and lead your life in a normal way :

▪ Of course he isn’t mad. He’s as sane as you or I.

▪ No sane person would believe such garbage!

perfectly sane

completely sane

▪ To his neighbours, Peter appeared perfectly sane.

▷ sanity /ˈsænɪti, ˈsænəti/ [uncountable noun]

when you are mentally healthy :

▪ If you have your health and your sanity, money isn’t really important.

▪ I began to doubt Donald’s sanity as his story got stranger and stranger.

▷ of sound mind /əv ˌsaʊnd ˈmaɪnd/ [adjective phrase]

a legal expression meaning not mentally ill and able to be responsible for your decisions and actions :

▪ You are allowed to vote only if you are over 18 and of sound mind.

Longman Activator English vocab.      Английский словарь Longman активатор .