# psych

/ˈsaɪk/ (US) · /sˈaɪk/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/psych
Updated: 2026-08-08

## Senses

### 5. psychedelic

adjective · CEFR C2 · Slang · Informal

related to a style of music or art that is very colourful, strange, and dream-like.

For teachers: A clipping of psychedelic; relating to drug-induced altered states or the artistic and musical styles associated with them.

- The band played a long psych rock song with lots of strange guitar sounds.
- The festival featured several psych bands that blended traditional folk melodies with heavy electronic distortion.

## Examples

- I'm moving to Mars tomorrow—psych!
- He told his sister he had eaten all her chocolate, but then shouted 'psych!' and pulled the unopened bar from his pocket.
- The comedian often used 'psych' to punctuate his bait-and-switch jokes, leading the audience toward a serious conclusion before subverting their expectations with a sudden, playful reveal.

---

From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.