fanatical
Americanadjective
adjective
Usage
What does fanatical mean? Fanatical means having and being motivated by an extreme and often unquestioning enthusiasm, devotion, or zeal for something, such as a religion, political stance, or cause. A person who shows such extreme enthusiasm or devotion is called a fanatic. Sometimes, fanatic is used negatively to imply that someone takes such devotion too far, as in They’re considered religious fanatics due to their extreme practices. Close synonyms are extremist, radical, and zealot. Other times, fanatic is not used negatively but instead simply refers to someone who is extreme in their devotion or enthusiasm for an interest or hobby. For example, calling someone a sports fanatic means they’re an extremely enthusiastic fan of sports. In fact, the word fan is a shortening of fanatic. Fanatical can be used to describe either a kind of fanatic or such a person’s beliefs or behavior. Example: We dismiss these extreme beliefs by calling them fanatical, but they may be more widespread than we think.
Related Words
See intolerant, radical.
Other Word Forms
- fanatically adverb
- fanaticalness noun
- nonfanatical adjective
- nonfanatically adverb
- unfanatical adjective
- unfanatically adverb
Etymology
Origin of fanatical
Explanation
If you are excessively enthusiastic about something — a sports team, an actor, your religion, saving the whales, a certain brand of chocolate — then you are fanatical about it. Fanatical comes from the word fanatic, which itself came from the Latin fanaticus, meaning "mad" or "inspired by a deity." The root word is fanum, or "temple." The original English meanings of both fanatic and fanatical implied that the person being described was insane with enthusiasm, like a religious zealot. The word fan is likely shortened from fanatic, and thus shares the same roots, but that word doesn't imply the same obsessiveness that fanatical does.
Vocabulary lists containing fanatical
"To Kill a Mockingbird" by Harper Lee, Chapters 7–11
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The Bean Trees
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"Simon's Saga," Vocabulary from Episode 34
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
India captain Suryakumar Yadav admitted Friday "there will be nerves" when India open their T20 World Cup campaign in front of more than 30,000 fanatical home supporters in Mumbai, but vowed to give them "entertainment".
From Barron's • Feb. 6, 2026
This is probably better suited to older kids, who won’t be disturbed by the themes, but will still appreciate the fanatical storytelling and stunning animation.
From Salon • Dec. 24, 2025
As ever, he’s fanatical about what makes a good one.
From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 31, 2025
"He is a workaholic, fanatical and leads from the front. I guess that is why a lot of these younger players who are coming through are working so hard for him and having great success."
From BBC • Mar. 3, 2025
His eyes are like that too, a piercing, slightly fanatical blue.
From "Cat's Eye" by Margaret Atwood
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
