Ecstasy
noun /ˈɛkstəsi/ — An overwhelming feeling of joy — standing outside oneself in rapture.
Definition
An overwhelming feeling of great happiness or joyful excitement; a state of being beyond reason and self-control; also, a trance-like state of mystic self-absorption.
Beyond the definition
Ecstasy at its full etymological force is the state of being outside yourself — the self displaced by experience so intense it occupies the whole field. The mystic tradition used it to describe union with the divine. In everyday use, it's the word for the emotion that makes ordinary selfhood feel temporary.
Origin & history
From Greek ekstasis — displacement, trance (from existanai: to put out of place). The 'ex' is the 'out' — to be beside yourself, displaced from your usual position by intensity of experience.
Example sentences
Illustrative sentences for learning, not verified community posts or sourced quotations.
The music reached its climax and she felt something close to ecstasy — she'd forgotten where she was.
Ecstasy: the emotion that temporarily relieves you of being yourself.
Mystics and partygoers describe the same thing: the self becoming briefly irrelevant in the face of something larger.
How to use it
This entry uses a noun. Follow the examples for articles and singular or plural forms; not every noun takes “a” or “an.”
Choose “Ecstasy” when the meaning fits your context: An overwhelming feeling of great happiness or joyful excitement; a state of being beyond reason and self-control; also, a trance-like state of mystic self-absorption.
Synonyms
Antonyms
misery, despair, agony
Related words
Word in the Wild
See how this word appears in life, language and stories.
Illustrative sentences and imagined stories for learning — not verified sightings, interviews, or sourced quotations.
Fictional scene
Conductor at the music peak
A conductor stands in the middle of an orchestra, their hands in an intense, expansive gesture as music peaks.
The conductor is lost in the intensity of the music, illustrating a state of self-absorption beyond reason and control, similar to the trance-like joy of ecstasy.
Image credit: Wordspun · AI-generated conceptual illustration
Questions about this word
What does "Ecstasy" mean?
Ecstasy is noun meaning: An overwhelming feeling of joy — standing outside oneself in rapture.. An overwhelming feeling of great happiness or joyful excitement; a state of being beyond reason and self-control; also, a trance-like state of mystic self-absorption.
Where does the word "Ecstasy" come from?
From Greek ekstasis — displacement, trance (from existanai: to put out of place). The 'ex' is the 'out' — to be beside yourself, displaced from your usual position by intensity of experience.