1

Are there any English words which mean "excessive amounts of laughing", "long-term laughing" or "laughing maniac"?

Example sentence:

The doctor said "I'm sorry, but your brother has an abnormally incurable disease called 'excessive amounts of laughing' disorder which affects him to make himself commonly laugh abnormally 10-50+ times per day.".

1
  • 1
    I don't think there's a single word you can use. From the humorous connotation in your example sentence, it seems to me that making one up would be quite appropriate. Something like "Ricky Gervais Syndrome" or something. Commented Feb 7, 2019 at 14:56

2 Answers 2

2

Your brother can be said to suffer from pathological laughter; the adjective pathological in this context means

3 : being such to a degree that is extreme, excessive, or markedly abnormal

(source: Merriam-Webster)

It's used for many other emotions or behaviour which are considered normal when they happen in moderation; M-W gives 'lying' and 'fear' as examples. Here is an academical article dealing with pathological laughter, to prove that these words collocate.

1

In terms of the name of a medical condition, here's what Wikipedia says about pseudobulbar affect:

Pseudobulbar affect (PBA), or emotional incontinence, is a type of emotional disturbance characterized by uncontrollable episodes of crying and/or laughing, or other emotional displays. PBA occurs secondary to a neurologic disorder or brain injury. Patients may find themselves crying uncontrollably at something that is only moderately sad, being unable to stop themselves for several minutes. Episodes may also be mood-incongruent: a patient may laugh uncontrollably when angry or frustrated, for example. Sometimes, the episodes may switch between emotional states, resulting in the patient crying uncontrollably before dissolving into fits of laughter.

The pseudobulbar affect, also referred to as emotional lability, should not be confused with labile mood or labile emotions that stem from emotional instability – affective dysregulation – commonly seen in personality disorders, such as borderline personality disorder.

Note that it's not specific only to laughter.

You must log in to answer this question.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged .