ˈparəkˌsizəm noun
( -s )
Etymology: French & Medieval Latin; French paroxysme, from Medieval Latin paroxysmus, from Greek paroxysmos paroxysm, irritation, from paroxynein to urge, stimulate, from para- para- (I) + oxynein to sharpen, provoke, from oxys sharp — more at oxy-
1.
a. : a sudden attack or spasm (as of a disease)
convulsed … in the paroxysms of an epileptic seizure — Thomas Hardy
b. : a sudden recurrence of symptoms or an intensification of existing symptoms
pain occurred in frequent paroxysms — Therapeutic Notes
2.
a. : a sudden, violent, and uncontrollable action or occurrence of emotion
threw himself at her feet in a paroxysm of grief — T.L.Peacock
burst into a paroxysm of laughter — Harriet La Barre
b. : a similar action occurring in nature : a convulsion of physical forces (as an earthquake or the eruption of a volcano)
the first great paroxysm of alpine orogeny — C.O.Dunbar
horizontal compression induced by the main tectonic paroxysms of the mountain ranges — Journal of Geology
3. : an extreme or climactic stage (as of a process, action, or series of developments)
marks the paroxysm of subtropical conditions — Julia Gardner
the very moment of fanatical paroxysm of the French Revolution — John Quincy Adams
4. obsolete : a violent and open disagreement or quarrel
the disagreement did proceed so far as to produce a paroxysm — Cotton Mather