any form of severe mental disorder in which the individual's contact with reality becomes highly distorted, for example by experiencing hallucinations or delusions
WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026
psy•cho•sis /saɪˈkoʊsɪs/USA pronunciation
n., pl. -ses /-siz/.USA pronunciation
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026- Psychiatrya mental disorder characterized by beliefs about the world and about oneself that are not based on reality: [uncountable]the treatment of psychosis.[countable]His psychoses included delusions and paranoia.
psy•cho•sis
(sī kō′sis),USA pronunciation n., pl. -ses (-sēz).USA pronunciation
- Psychiatrya mental disorder characterized by symptoms, such as delusions or hallucinations, that indicate impaired contact with reality.
- Psychiatryany severe form of mental disorder, as schizophrenia or paranoia.
- Late Greek psý̄chōsis animation, principle of life. See psych-, -osis
- 1840–50
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
'psychosis' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
Dubuffet
- Korsakoffian
- alcoholic psychosis
- alcoholism
- antipsychotic
- butyrophenone
- disturbed
- fixed idea
- insanity
- mental illness
- monomania
- orthotic
- postpartum psychosis
- prison psychosis
- psychopathology
- psychotic
- psychotomimetic
- puerperal psychosis
- reintegration
- toxic psychosis