Adjacent Words

Enthusiasm definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

ENTHU'SIASM, n. enthuziazm. [Gr. to infuse a divine spirit, inspired, divine; God.]
1. A belief or conceit of private revelation; the vain confidence or opinion of a person, that he has special divine communications from the Supreme Being, or familiar intercourse with him.
Enthusiasm is founded neither on reason nor divine revelation, but rises from the conceits of a warmed or overweening imagination.
2. Heat of imagination; violent passion or excitement of the mind, in pursuit of some object, inspiring extravagant hope and confidence of success. Hence the same heat of imagination, chastised by reason or experience, becomes a noble passion, an elevated fancy, a warm imagination, an ardent zeal, that forms sublime ideas, and prompts to the ardent pursuit of laudable objects. Such is the enthusiasm of the poet, the orator, the painter and the sculptor. Such is the enthusiasm of the patriot, the hero and the christian.
Faction and enthusiasm are the instruments by which popular government are destroyed.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: a feeling of excitement
2: overflowing with eager enjoyment or approval [syn: exuberance, enthusiasm, ebullience]
3: a lively interest; "enthusiasm for his program is growing"

Merriam Webster's

noun Etymology: Greek enthousiasmos, from enthousiazein to be inspired, irregular from entheos inspired, from en- + theos god Date: 1603 1. a. belief in special revelations of the Holy Spirit b. religious fanaticism 2. a. strong excitement of feeling ; ardor <did her work with energy and enthusiasm> b. something inspiring zeal or fervor <his enthusiasms include sailing and fishing> Synonyms: see passion

Oxford Reference Dictionary

n. 1 (often foll. by for, about) a strong interest or admiration. b great eagerness. 2 an object of enthusiasm. 3 archaic extravagant religious emotion. Etymology: F enthousiasme or LL enthusiasmus f. Gk enthousiasmos f. entheos possessed by a god, inspired (as EN-(2), theos god)

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Enthusiasm En*thu"si*asm, n. [Gr. ?, fr. ? to be inspired or possessed by the god, fr. ?, ?, inspired: cf. enthousiasme. See Entheal, Theism.] 1. Inspiration as if by a divine or superhuman power; ecstasy; hence, a conceit of divine possession and revelation, or of being directly subject to some divine impulse. Enthusiasm is founded neither on reason nor divine revelation, but rises from the conceits of a warmed or overweening imagination. --Locke. 2. A state of impassioned emotion; transport; elevation of fancy; exaltation of soul; as, the poetry of enthusiasm. Resolutions adopted in enthusiasm are often repented of when excitement has been succeeded by the wearing duties of hard everyday routine. --Froude. Exhibiting the seeming contradiction of susceptibility to enthusiasm and calculating shrewdness. --Bancroft. 3. Enkindled and kindling fervor of soul; strong excitement of feeling on behalf of a cause or a subject; ardent and imaginative zeal or interest; as, he engaged in his profession with enthusiasm. Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm. --Emerson. 4. Lively manifestation of joy or zeal. Philip was greeted with a tumultuous enthusiasm. --Prescott.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(enthusiasms) Frequency: The word is one of the 3000 most common words in English. 1. Enthusiasm is great eagerness to be involved in a particular activity which you like and enjoy or which you think is important. Their skill, enthusiasm and running has got them in the team. N-VAR: oft N for n/-ing 2. An enthusiasm is an activity or subject that interests you very much and that you spend a lot of time on. Draw him out about his current enthusiasms and future plans. = interest N-COUNT: oft with poss

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

n. 1. Ecstasy (from a belief of being inspired), fanaticism, religious frenzy. 2. Ardor, zeal, warmth, earnestness, passion, devotion. 3. Heat of imagination, mental excitement.

Moby Thesaurus

acquiescence, activity, agreeability, agreeableness, alacrity, amenability, amusement, animation, ardency, ardor, avidity, brio, briskness, bug, calenture, cathexis, cheerful consent, compliance, concern, concernment, consent, cooperativeness, craze, crazy fancy, curiosity, devotedness, devotion, diversion, docility, eagerness, earnest, earnestness, ebullience, elan, enthusiasticalness, excitement, exuberance, fad, fanaticism, fascination, favorable disposition, favorableness, fervency, fervor, fieriness, fire, forwardness, furor, furore, gameness, glow, goodwill, gusto, hobby, hurrah, impassionedness, impetuosity, impetus, infatuation, interest, joie de vivre, keenness, life, liveliness, lustiness, mania, manic-depressive psychosis, matter of interest, mettle, passion, pastime, perkiness, pertness, pliability, pliancy, promptness, rage, readiness, receptive mood, receptiveness, receptivity, relish, responsiveness, right mood, robustness, special interest, spirit, spiritedness, tractability, ungrudgingness, unloathness, unreluctance, vehemence, vivacity, warmth, willing ear, willing heart, willingness, zeal, zealousness, zest, zestfulness, zing