psych

See also: psych-

English

Etymology

Clipping.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /saɪk/

• Audio (CA)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -aɪk
• Homophones: sike, cyc

Noun

psych (countable and uncountable, plural psychs)

1. Psychology or psychiatry.

   I took psych my freshman year in university.

2. A psychologist; a psychiatrist.
   • 1978, Lawrence Durrell, Livia, Faber & Faber 1992 (Avignon Quintet), p. 476:

     She had attended a conference of psychs at which he had presided and they had taken a fancy to each other.

Adjective

psych (comparative more psych, superlative most psych)

1. (informal) Psychedelic.

   curtains with psych colors

   a psych band; a psych album. Psych-rock and psych-folk music.

2. (informal) Psychiatric.

   involuntarily committed to the psych ward

Verb

psych (third-person singular simple present psychs, present participle psyching, simple past and past participle psyched)

1. (transitive, reflexive) To put (someone) into a required psychological frame of mind (also psych up).

   Hip hop always gets me psyched, so I put it on before a race.

2. (transitive) To intimidate (someone) emotionally or using psychology (also psych out).
3. (transitive, informal) To treat (someone) using psychoanalysis.

Derived terms

• psych out
• psych up

Interjection

psych

1. (slang) Indicating that one's preceding statement was false and that one has successfully fooled one's interlocutor.

   Synonym: sike

   Here, have fifty dollars. Psych! That was two dollars!

2. (dated, slang) An interjection of surprised happiness.

   Psych! I just found my missing bracelet!

Related terms

• psych-
• psycho-
• psyche
• psych verb