excitement

excitement — noun

1. a strong, happy feeling that you experience when you are expecting something enj

1.nounB1
Definition

a strong, happy feeling that you experience when you are expecting something enjoyable to happen, or a specific event or situation that creates this feeling

Example

Naoko could hardly contain her excitement when the acceptance letter from the university arrived.

collocation: could hardly contain one's excitement

The crowd's excitement grew louder as the band walked onto the brightly lit stage.

collocation: excitement grows/grew

Common collocations
  • great excitement
  • mounting excitement
  • growing excitement
  • with excitement
  • in one's excitement
  • excitement about
  • excitement of
  • a wave of excitement
  • a sense of excitement
  • a flutter of excitement
Synonyms
  • thrill

    stronger and more intense than excitement, often short-lived (e.g., the thrill of a roller coaster)

  • enthusiasm

    more about sustained, active eagerness that shows in behaviour rather than a momentary feeling

  • anticipation

    focuses on the forward-looking aspect of waiting for something, not necessarily energetic

Antonyms
  • boredom

    the lack of interest or stimulation

  • apathy

    the absence of any strong feeling, more formal in tone

Grammar Patterns

uncountable: feeling of excitement

countable: an excitement (a specific exciting event)

excitement + about/of + something

with + excitement

in + one's + excitement

Usage Note

Usually uncountable when describing the general feeling. Can be used with a or an (countable, singular) when referring to a specific exciting event or experience. Common structural patterns include with excitement (manner), excitement about or excitement of (topic), and in one's excitement (describing the cause of an unintended action).

Common Mistakes

The movie was very excitement.
The movie was very exciting.
Excitement is a noun; the adjective form exciting must follow be.
I have a big excitement about the trip.
I am very excited about the trip.
The general feeling is uncountable; use the adjective excited with am, feel, or get.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

Excitement is the broadest term, covering the general happy energy you feel when something good is about to happen or has just begun. Thrill is sharper and more intense — a short, sudden rush of excitement, like the thrill of riding a roller coaster. Enthusiasm suggests a more active, lasting eagerness that shows in your behaviour; someone who talks eagerly about a project shows enthusiasm, not just excitement. Anticipation is the forward-looking feeling of waiting for something, which may be quiet or tense rather than energetic — for example, the nervous anticipation before exam results are announced.

excitement ↗thrillenthusiasm ↗anticipation

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

Phrases

  • with excitement
  • in one's excitement
  • a sense of excitement
  • a wave of excitement

Prepositions

Etymology

LatinFrenchEnglish

Excitement comes from the Latin word excitare, meaning 'to call out' or 'to rouse.' It passed into English through Old French. The noun excitement first appeared in the 1600s, originally referring to something that stirs up action or strong emotion, and later also came to describe the inner feeling itself.