nervous breakdown
noun
: an attack of mental or emotional disorder especially when of sufficient severity to require hospitalization
Examples of nervous breakdown in a Sentence
She had a nervous breakdown shortly after her sister's death.
He is on the verge of a nervous breakdown.
Recent Examples on the Web
The Gutierrez brothers grew up in a low-income house with an alcoholic father who frequently beat both his sons and his wife, who at one point was hospitalized after a nervous breakdown, according to Diane Mosnik, a clinical neuropsychologist who evaluated Gutierrez in 2019.
—
Marley Malenfant, Austin American-Statesman, 16 July 2024
Set in 1960s Italy, Sally Bishop (Monroe) and her husband travel to a remote villa in the wake of Sally’s nervous breakdown.
—Zac Ntim, Deadline, 30 Oct. 2024
As Greenberg, a carpenter on the back end of a nervous breakdown, Stiller lets his normally muscular shoulders slump forward and his eyes refuse to light up with their famous blueness.
—Sean Malin, Vulture, 5 Sep. 2024
George's lawyer had said the student left Barbers Hill High School in Mont Belvieu and transferred to another high school in a different Houston area district after suffering a nervous breakdown over the thought of facing another year of punishment.
—CBS News, 4 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for nervous breakdown 
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Marley Malenfant, Austin American-Statesman, 16 July 2024
Set in 1960s Italy, Sally Bishop (Monroe) and her husband travel to a remote villa in the wake of Sally’s nervous breakdown.
—Zac Ntim, Deadline, 30 Oct. 2024
As Greenberg, a carpenter on the back end of a nervous breakdown, Stiller lets his normally muscular shoulders slump forward and his eyes refuse to light up with their famous blueness.
—Sean Malin, Vulture, 5 Sep. 2024
George's lawyer had said the student left Barbers Hill High School in Mont Belvieu and transferred to another high school in a different Houston area district after suffering a nervous breakdown over the thought of facing another year of punishment.
—CBS News, 4 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for nervous breakdown
Dictionary Entries Near nervous breakdown
Cite this Entry
“Nervous breakdown.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/nervous%20breakdown. Accessed 26 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share