psych

noun

1. 1

   informalClipping of psychiatry. A psychiatric hospital or other treatment facility; also, a psychiatric department or ward in such a facility.

   He had to be involuntarily committed to the psych ward.

   "I couldn't stay in the psych. I had to get out, before Rudolf got to me. He is alive; he set me up," I tell him, looking around, and trying to figure out why I'm not in prison or at the police station.

   I still stood by my assessment that she should've checked into psych. Body dysmorphia was one thing but actually believing Barbie was a real person walking among us? That was a little too much.

2. 2

   Variant of psychiatryinformalClipping of psychiatry.

3. 3

   Variant of psychologyinformalClipping of psychology.

   I took psych in my freshman year at college.

noun

1. 1

   Variant of psychiatristinformalClipping of psychiatrist.

   [S]he had had what she declared was a momentous series of meetings with [Sigmund] Freud in Vienna. She had attended a conference of psychs at which he had presided and they had taken a fancy to each other.

2. 2

   Variant of psychologistinformalClipping of psychologist; also, a clipping of psychoanalyst.

verb

1. 1

   informalChiefly followed by out: to analyse (something), especially psychologically; also (generally), to work out (something).

2. 2

   Variant of psychoanalyseinformalClipping of psychoanalyse (“to treat (someone) using psychoanalysis”); also, to carry out psychological testing on (someone).

   Prisoners brought from all the lockups in the city were unloaded here. […] They trooped in to be psyched, social-worked, assigned to cells.

verb

1. 1

   informalOften followed by out: to deceive, intimidate, or otherwise manipulate (someone or oneself) emotionally or using psychology.

2. 2

   informalOften followed by up: to put (someone or oneself) into a mental or psychological state where one is ready for some (often challenging) experience; specifically, to make (someone or oneself) enthusiastic or excited about something.

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

   On the stage, what we have to try to have shine through is our love for each other. Sometimes it's difficult, we have to try to psych ourselves out of the places we're at and go to a higher spiritual plane.

3. 3

   informalOf a person: to get into a mental or psychological state where one is ready for some (often challenging) experience; specifically, to make oneself enthusiastic or excited about something.

4. 4

   informalFollowed by out: to become mentally confused or disturbed.

interjection

1. 1

   informalUsed to indicate jokingly that a statement which one has made was false and that one has successfully fooled the person whom one is speaking to; just kidding!, not!, tricked you!

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

   I broke up with my girlfriend. Here’s her number. Psych! That’s the wrong number!

2. 2

   informalUsed to express surprised happiness; wow!

   Psych! I just found my missing bracelet!

noun

1. 1

   Variant of psychicinformalClipping of psychic (“a person who possesses, or appears to possess, extra-sensory abilities such as clairvoyance, precognition, and telepathy, or who appears to be susceptible to paranormal or supernatural influences”).

2. 2

   Variant of psychic or psychic bidinformalClipping of psychic or psychic bid (“a bid intended to mislead opponents by giving a false impression about one's hand of playing cards”).

verb

1. 1

   informalTo make (a bid) intended to mislead opponents by giving a false impression about one's hand of playing cards.

2. 2

   informalTo deceive (an opponent or opponents) with such a psychic bid.

3. 3

   informalTo make a bid intended to mislead opponents by giving a false impression about one's hand of playing cards; to make a psychic bid.

adjective

1. 1

   informalOf or relating to psychedelic rock music.

   a psych album a psych band

2. 2

   Variant of psychedelicinformalClipping of psychedelic (“of, containing, generating, or reminiscent of drug-induced altered awareness, distortions of perception, hallucinations, etc.”).

   curtains with psych colours psych-rock

noun

1. 1

   Variant of psychedelic rockinformalClipping of psychedelic rock (“a genre of rock music influenced by psychedelia, blues, electronic music, folk music, jazz, and the hippie counterculture of the 1960s”).

Forms

plural

psychs, psyches

comparative

more psych

superlative

most psych

past tense

psyched

past participle

psyched

present participle

psyching

third person singular

psychs