hysteria

/hɪˈstɛɹiə/

//hɪˈstɛɹiə// noun

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"hysteria" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“hysteria” has 12 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #17,635. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#17,635
frequency rank, English
23,837
“H” headwords
12
tracked misspellings
2
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Behavior exhibiting excessive or uncontrollable emotions, in a wide range from joy to panic but usually including anxiety or fear.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

hysteria vs hysterics
78% similar
hysteria vs hysterical
80% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for hysteria
PropertyValue
Headwordhysteria
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/hɪˈstɛɹiə/
Letters8
Frequency rank#17,635
Misspellings tracked12
Confusable pairs2
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “hysteria” sits in English frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). hysteria lands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 12 spelling variants around hysteria (IPA /hɪˈstɛɹiə/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #17,635 among 23,837 “H” headwords. Wiktionary lists 4 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 12 likely wrong-spelling variants for hysteria, with forms such as "hhysteria", "hsyteria", and "hysetria". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 2 confusable-pair relationships, "hysterics", "hysterical", a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: From New Latin hysteria, a back-formation from Latin hystericus, from Ancient Greek ὑστερικός (husterikós, “suffering in the uterus, hysterical”), from ὑστέρα (hustéra, “womb”). Compare French hystérie. The correct English form is hysteria, spelled H-Y-S-T-E-R-I-A.

Definition

  1. 1
    Behavior exhibiting excessive or uncontrollable emotions, in a wide range from joy to panic but usually including anxiety or fear.
  2. 2
    A mental disorder characterized by emotional excitability etc. without an organic cause.
  3. 3
    Synonym of conversion disorder.
  4. 4
    Any disorder of women with some psychiatric symptoms without other diagnosis, ascribed to uterine influences on the female body, lack of pregnancy, or lack of sex.

Etymology

From New Latin hysteria, a back-formation from Latin hystericus, from Ancient Greek ὑστερικός (husterikós, “suffering in the uterus, hysterical”), from ὑστέρα (hustéra, “womb”). Compare French hystérie.

Synonyms

uterine melancholy

This word in other languages

histeria(Español)hystérie(Français)Hysterie(Deutsch)histeria(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: hhysteria,hsyteria,hysetria,hyssteria,hysteira,hysterai,hysterria,hystreia,hystteria,hytseria,hyysteria,yhsteria

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of hysteria - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

hhysteria1hsyteria2hysetria2hyssteria1hysteira2hysterai2hysterria1hystreia2
Edit distance from "hysteria"

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "hysteria"?
"hysteria" is spelled H-Y-S-T-E-R-I-A. The IPA pronunciation is /hɪˈstɛɹiə/.
What does "hysteria" mean?
As a noun, "hysteria" means: Behavior exhibiting excessive or uncontrollable emotions, in a wide range from joy to panic but usually including anxiety or fear.
What words are commonly confused with "hysteria"?
"hysteria" is commonly confused with "hysterics", "hysterical". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "hysteria"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "hysteria" is /hɪˈstɛɹiə/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "hysteria"?
From New Latin hysteria, a back-formation from Latin hystericus, from Ancient Greek ὑστερικός (husterikós, “suffering in the uterus, hysterical”), from ὑστέρα (hustéra, “womb”). Compare French hystérie. See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Using “hysteria”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is H-Y-S-T-E-R-I-A - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /hɪˈstɛɹiə/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “hysterics” - see the side-by-side comparison. hysteria vs hysterics
  • Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words

Same frequency band

Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list