euphoria
5 synonyms and 3 antonyms for euphoria, grouped by meaning and by how common each one is.
Noun — A feeling of intense happiness and excitement, often sudden and short-lived.
Synonyms
Less common
Still standard English, but they carry more weight.
Rare, literary or technical
Precise, but they will stand out — check the sense before using one.
Synonyms by Meaning
1. noun
A feeling of intense happiness and excitement, often sudden and short-lived.
“There was euphoria in the streets when the result was announced.”
Opposites
2. noun medical
An abnormally elevated mood produced by illness, injury or a drug, sometimes out of keeping with the person's actual situation.
“Patients on high doses often report euphoria followed by a heavy crash.”
Opposites
How to use euphoria
The word patterns that sound natural to a native speaker.
Etymology
From Greek euphoria ('power of enduring easily'), from eu ('well') plus pherein ('to bear').
Full origin of euphoria →Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between euphoria and happiness?
Happiness is a broad, often steady sense of contentment or wellbeing. Euphoria is far more intense, usually sudden, and typically brief, and it can occur without any real cause, which is why the word is also used clinically.
What is the opposite of euphoria?
In everyday use, despair or misery. In medicine the technical opposite is 'dysphoria', a state of unease and dissatisfaction with one's mood or situation.
What is 'runner's high'?
It is a wave of euphoria and reduced pain reported after prolonged exercise. Endorphins were long credited for it, though research now points also to endocannabinoids produced during sustained effort.