Word
bedlam
Phoneticsbed·lam
US/ˈbɛdɫəm/
UK/bˈɛdlæm/
Definition
n. a state of total confusion, noise, and disorder. You use it to describe a situation where everything is chaotic and nobody is in control.
n. a state of extreme confusion, noise, and disorder.
Examples
“The kitchen was a bedlam of shouting and clattering pans.”
“The sudden power outage turned the busy airport into a bedlam of confused travelers and ringing phones.”
“The final minutes of the championship game were a total bedlam, with fans storming the field and players shouting over the deafening roar of the crowd.”
Examples
simple
“The kitchen was a bedlam of shouting and clattering pans.”
contextual
“The sudden power outage turned the busy airport into a bedlam of confused travelers and ringing phones.”
complex
“The final minutes of the championship game were a total bedlam, with fans storming the field and players shouting over the deafening roar of the crowd.”
Real-World Examples
“A gameshow that scoffs in the face of convention yet seems bewildered by the bedlam that such showmanship inevitably unleashes.” “In the open air of the Raiffeisen Arena, with bedlam all around, there was nowhere to hide for Celtic or Martin O'Neill.” Etymology
From Bedlam, alternative name of the English lunatic asylum, Bethlem Royal Hospital (royal hospital from 1375, mental hospital from 1403) (earlier St Mary of Bethlehem outside Bishopsgate, hospice in existence from 1329, priory established 1247), since used to mean “a place or situation of madness and chaos”. Bedlam as name of hospital attested 1450. Phonologically, corruption of Bethlem, itself a corruption of Bethlehem (the Biblical town), from Ancient Greek Βηθλεέμ (Bēthleém) from Biblical Hebrew בֵּית לֶחֶם (bêṯ leḥem, literally “house of bread”). However, also compare Spanish belén (“confusion, disorder; a place characteristic of such”).
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Idioms
all bedlam breaks loose — The situation becomes chaotic or characterized by conflict or rage.