Word
schizophrenic
Phoneticsschiz·o·phrenic
US/ˌʃɪzəˈfɹɛnɪk/
UK/skˌɪtsəfɹˈɛnɪk/
Definition
adj. describing someone with a serious mental illness that affects how they think and feel. In casual talk, people sometimes use it to describe something that changes quickly or doesn't make sense, but this can be rude.
adj. relating to a mental disorder characterised by delusions, hallucinations, and fragmented thought processes. When applied to inanimate objects or situations, it describes a state of extreme inconsistency or contradictory qualities.
Examples
“The weather lately has been almost schizophrenic, switching from sun to snow.”
“The film received mixed reviews because of its schizophrenic tone, which shifted abruptly from slapstick comedy to dark tragedy.”
Examples
simple
“The weather lately has been almost schizophrenic, switching from sun to snow.”
contextual
“The film received mixed reviews because of its schizophrenic tone, which shifted abruptly from slapstick comedy to dark tragedy.”
Usage
Often used as a participial adjective; when used figuratively to mean 'inconsistent', it is considered offensive by many and should be avoided in formal or sensitive contexts.
Real-World Examples
“ATHVisions/E+ via Getty Images It’s common to hear casual descriptions of “schizophrenic” behavior, describing a person oscillating between two extremes.” “He almost came face to face with his morphic energies in 2008; speaking at a consciousness conference in Santa Fe, New Mexico, he was attacked with a knife by a Japanese paranoid schizophrenic.” “A similar study with paranoid schizophrenics revealed that some participants suspected triangles of “hiding from” or “tricking” one another, as though in a vast conspiracy.” Etymology
From schizophrenia + -ic.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Word family
Scan code
englishreference.com/q/schizophrenic