I. əˈmək also -äk noun
or amuck əˈmək
( -s )
Etymology: Malay amok furious attack, charge (as in mĕngamok he runs amok, pĕngamok one that runs amok
1. archaic : a Malay that goes into a murderous frenzy and attacks people at random
2. : a murderous frenzy that occurs chiefly among Malays
an inflexible, confined, and unpermissive environment is the essence of amok — J.M.Van der Kroef
II. adverb
or amuck “
Etymology: Malay amok
1. : in a murderously frenzied manner
2.
a. : in a violently raging manner
the North Sea ran amok — Joseph O'Connor
b. : in an undisciplined manner : needlessly
an era which seems to have run amok with its love for the strange — E.P.Hanson
III. adjective
or amuck “
Etymology: Malay amok
: possessed with a murderous or violently uncontrollable frenzy
an amok soldier