verb

impazzire

go crazy · to go crazy

Perdere il controllo della mente o delle emozioni, non riuscendo più a ragionare in modo calmo e normale.

Definition & meaning

impazzire is an Italian verb that primarily means "to go mad," "to go crazy," or "to lose one's mind." It can be used in several contexts:

Mental state: To lose the capacity for rational thought or to become mentally ill.
Extreme emotion: To become intensely excited, angry, or frustrated. For example, "impazzire di gioia" means to go crazy with joy.
Mechanical or physical failure: Often used figuratively to describe something that is malfunctioning, erratic, or not working as expected (e.g., "il computer sta impazzendo").
Strong attraction: To be obsessed with or extremely fond of someone or something (e.g., "impazzire per la musica").

Grammar & Word origin

impazzire is a regular intransitive verb (belonging to the third conjugation). It typically takes the auxiliary verb essere (to be) in compound tenses because it describes a change of state.

The word is formed by the prefix im- (a variant of in-, indicating "into" or "becoming") + the root pazzo (crazy/mad) + the suffix -ire (which marks the infinitive of the verb). Essentially, it translates etymologically to "to become crazy."