arousal
n.a state of being awake, alert, and physically active. It can also mean a feeling of excitement or sexual interest.
n.a physiological and psychological state of being awake or reactive to stimuli. Refers to the activation of the reticular activating system in the brain, leading to increased heart rate and blood pressure.
“The loud music caused a high level of arousal in the crowd.”
“Psychologists study how emotional arousal affects a person's ability to remember specific details of a stressful event.”
“The Yerkes-Dodson law suggests that performance increases with physiological or mental arousal, but only up to a point; when levels become too high, performance actually begins to decrease.”
Often used in medical, psychological, or sexual contexts; frequently paired with 'emotional', 'physiological', or 'sexual'.
Usage emotional arousal
“Likewise, "rage" and "sadness" are both unpleasant emotions, yet they also differ in arousal.”
“Two of the main ways exercise can upgrade your sex life are that your body gets better at arousal and your mind less likely to interrupt it.”
From arouse + -al.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.