Meaning & use
hyperkinetic
Last updated
Meanings
adjectivenot comparablemedical
Relating to a medical condition of extreme, uncontrollable movement and restlessness.
Grammar: Used before a noun or after a linking verb: a hyperkinetic disorder; the patient is hyperkinetic.
Patterns
- a hyperkinetic disorder
- be hyperkinetic
- hyperkinetic behavior
The doctor diagnosed the boy with a hyperkinetic disorder.
Hyperkinetic children often find it hard to sit still in class.
She was so hyperkinetic that she could not stay in her seat for more than a minute.
adjectivenot comparabletechnicalphysics
Moving or changing very quickly, especially in physics or technical contexts.
Grammar: Often used before nouns like 'motion' or 'particles'.
Patterns
- hyperkinetic motion
- hyperkinetic particles
- hyperkinetic flow
The hyperkinetic motion of the particles made them impossible to track.
In the experiment, the gas became hyperkinetic under extreme heat.
The dancers moved with a hyperkinetic energy that matched the fast music.
Common combinations
- hyperkinetic disorder
- Hyperkinetic disorder is a serious condition requiring specialist care.
- hyperkinetic behavior
- The teacher noted his hyperkinetic behavior during quiet reading time.
- hyperkinetic motion
- The machine produced a hyperkinetic motion that was hard to control.
Synonyms and how they differ
- hyperactive
- More common and less technical; it can describe a lively child or an overactive thyroid, while hyperkinetic is usually a medical or physics term.
- overactive
- Suggests too much activity in a part of the body or a person; it does not carry the specific medical meaning of hyperkinetic.
- restless
- Describes an inability to stay still, often from boredom or anxiety, but not the extreme level of hyperkinetic.
Opposites
Word family
- hyperkinesia noun
- The medical term for excessive movement.
- hyperkinesis noun
- Another word for hyperkinesia; abnormal increase in muscle activity.
Commonly confused: hyperkinetic or hypokinetic?
hyperkinetic vs hypokinetic
The opposite: having abnormally decreased movement. The prefixes hyper- (too much) and hypo- (too little) are easy to confuse.
Practice
In which sentence is 'hyperkinetic' used correctly?
Choose one answer.
Hyperkinetic means extremely active and unable to stay still, so running around fits. Sitting quietly, being too tired, and speaking slowly all describe the opposite.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “hyperkinetic”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.