madhouse

/ˈmædhaʊs/ (bre, ipa) · /ˈmædhaʊs/ (ame, ipa) · /ˈmad-ˌhau̇s/ (ame, mw)

madhouse — 名詞

  • madhousesingular
  • madhousesplural

1. a place that feels wildly noisy and out of control, with people rushing around i

1.名詞B2
釋義

亂成一團

吵鬧失序的地方

a place that feels wildly noisy and out of control, with people rushing around in a confused way

例句

The station turned into a madhouse after two trains were suddenly canceled.

兩班火車突然取消後，車站一下子亂成一團。

turn into a madhouse: become chaotic very quickly

By noon, the toy shop was a madhouse with crying kids everywhere.

到了中午，那家玩具店變得亂成一團，到處都是哭鬧的孩子。

同義詞
  • zoo

    informal and close in meaning, often used for a crowded, noisy place

  • circus

    informal; suggests noisy, silly activity as well as disorder

  • chaos

    more general; describes the disorder itself rather than the place

反義詞
  • haven

    a calm, welcoming place rather than a noisy one

  • sanctuary

    stresses quiet protection and relief from pressure

文法句型

a madhouse

turn into a madhouse

be a madhouse

用法筆記

This figurative sense is informal and usually appears with the article 'a'. Distinguish from sense 2: here the word describes any place that is noisy and disorderly, not an actual hospital.

常見錯誤

❌The office was madhouse today.
✅The office was a madhouse today.
💡This countable noun needs the article 'a' in the figurative sense.

2. a dated and insulting word for a hospital that treats people with severe mental

2.名詞C1
釋義

瘋人院

對精神病院的舊式貶稱

a dated and insulting word for a hospital that treats people with severe mental illness

例句

In the old film, the family threatens to send Ignacio to the madhouse.

在那部老電影裡，家人威脅要把 Ignacio 送進瘋人院。

send someone to the madhouse: dated, offensive wording

A 1930 newspaper called the hospital a madhouse, but the word is insulting.

一九三零年的那篇報紙把那家醫院叫作瘋人院，但這個詞帶有侮辱意味。

historical quotation of an offensive label

同義詞
  • psychiatric hospital

    the neutral modern term used in present-day English

  • mental hospital

    understandable and less insulting, though less current than psychiatric hospital

  • asylum

    historical term for an institution of this kind; now sounds dated

文法句型

the madhouse

send someone to the madhouse

用法筆記

You mainly see this sense in older writing, quoted historical speech, or discussion of past institutions. In present-day English it sounds offensive; people usually say 'psychiatric hospital' or 'mental health hospital' instead. Distinguish from sense 1: this sense names a real institution, not a busy or chaotic place.