Adjacent Words

Bedlam definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

BED'LAM, n. [Corrupted from Bethlehem, the name of a religious house in London, afterward converted into a hospital for lunatics.]
1. A mad house; a place appropriated for lunatics.]
2. A madman; a lunatic; one who lives in Bedlam.
3. A place of uproar.
BED'LAM, a. Belonging to a mad house; fit for a mad house.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: a state of extreme confusion and disorder [syn: chaos, pandemonium, bedlam, topsy-turvydom, topsy- turvyness]
2: pejorative terms for an insane asylum [syn: Bedlam, booby hatch, crazy house, cuckoo's nest, funny farm, funny house, loony bin, madhouse, nut house, nuthouse, sanatorium, snake pit]

Merriam Webster's

noun Etymology: Bedlam, popular name for the Hospital of Saint Mary of Bethlehem, London, an insane asylum, from Middle English Bedlem Bethlehem Date: 1522 1. obsolete madman, lunatic 2. often capitalized a lunatic asylum 3. a place, scene, or state of uproar and confusion • bedlam adjective

Oxford Reference Dictionary

n. 1 a scene of uproar and confusion (the traffic was bedlam). 2 archaic a madhouse; an asylum. Etymology: hospital of St Mary of Bethlehem in London

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Bedlam Bed"lam, n. [See Bethlehem.] 1. A place appropriated to the confinement and care of the insane; a madhouse. --Abp. Tillotson. 2. An insane person; a lunatic; a madman. [Obs.] Let's get the bedlam to lead him. --Shak. 3. Any place where uproar and confusion prevail.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Bedlam Bed"lam, a. Belonging to, or fit for, a madhouse. ``The bedlam, brainsick duchess.'' --Shak.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

Bedlam means a great deal of noise and disorder. People often say 'It was bedlam' to mean 'There was bedlam'. The crowd went absolutely mad. It was bedlam... = chaos

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

n. Madhouse, lunatic hospital, lunatic asylum, hospital for the insane.

Moby Thesaurus

Babel, Bedlam let loose, asylum, blast, bobbery, brawl, brouhaha, bughouse, cacophony, chaos, charivari, chirm, clamor, clangor, clap, clatter, commotion, confusion, confusion of tongues, din, discord, donnybrook, drunken brawl, dustup, flap, fracas, free-for-all, hell, hell broke loose, howl, hubbub, hue and cry, hullabaloo, insane asylum, jangle, loud noise, lunatic asylum, madhouse, mental home, mental hospital, mental institution, noise, noise and shouting, nuthouse, outcry, padded cell, pandemonium, psychiatric ward, psychopathic hospital, racket, rattle, rhubarb, roar, row, ruckus, ruction, rumble, rumpus, shindy, shivaree, static, thunder, thunderclap, tintamarre, tumult, turmoil, uproar