Mad \Mad\, a. [Compar. {Madder}; superl. {Maddest}.] [AS. gem?d,
gem[=a]d, mad; akin to OS. gem?d foolish, OHG. gameit, Icel.
mei?a to hurt, Goth. gam['a]ids weak, broken. ?.]
1. Disordered in intellect; crazy; insane.
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I have heard my grandsire say full oft,
Extremity of griefs would make men mad. --Shak.
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2. Excited beyond self-control or the restraint of reason;
inflamed by violent or uncontrollable desire, passion, or
appetite; as, to be mad with terror, lust, or hatred; mad
against political reform.
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It is the land of graven images, and they are mad
upon their idols. --Jer. 1. 88.
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And being exceedingly mad against them, I persecuted
them even unto strange cities. --Acts xxvi.
11.
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3. Proceeding from, or indicating, madness; expressing
distraction; prompted by infatuation, fury, or extreme
rashness. "Mad demeanor." --Milton.
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Mad wars destroy in one year the works of many years
of peace. --Franklin.
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The mad promise of Cleon was fulfilled. --Jowett
(Thucyd.).
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4. Extravagant; immoderate. "Be mad and merry." --Shak.
"Fetching mad bounds." --Shak.
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5. Furious with rage, terror, or disease; -- said of the
lower animals; as, a mad bull; esp., having hydrophobia;
rabid; as, a mad dog.
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6. Angry; out of patience; vexed; as, to get mad at a person.
[Colloq.]
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7. Having impaired polarity; -- applied to a compass needle.
[Colloq.]
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{Like mad}, like a mad person; in a furious manner; as, to
run like mad. --L'Estrange.
{To run mad}.
(a) To become wild with excitement.
(b) To run wildly about under the influence of
hydrophobia; to become affected with hydrophobia.
{To run mad after}, to pursue under the influence of
infatuation or immoderate desire. "The world is running
mad after farce." --Dryden.
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