hectic

Etymology

From Middle English etik, ethik, from Old French etique, from Medieval Latin *hecticus, from Ancient Greek ἑκτικός (hektikós, “habitual, hectic, consumptive”), from ἕξις (héxis, “a state or habit of body or of mind, condition”), from ἔχειν (ékhein, “to have, hold, be in a certain state”).

adj

1. (figurative) Very busy with activity and confusion.
   The city center is so hectic at 8 in the morning that I go to work an hour beforehand to avoid the crowds
2. (obsolete) Denoting a type of fever accompanying consumption and similar wasting diseases, characterised by flushed cheeks and dry skin.
   hectic fever
3. (obsolete) Pertaining to or symptomatic of such a fever.

noun

1. (obsolete) A hectic fever.
2. (obsolete) A flush like one produced by such a fever.
   an angry hectic in each cheek, a fierce flirt of her fan, and two or three short sniffs that betokened mischief 1863, Sheridan Le Fanu, The House by the Churchyard