Exhilaration is a rush of excited high spirits. A sense of exhilaration.
It is physical as much as mental, which is why cold air and speed produce it. Exhilaration fades within minutes, which is what separates it from happiness.
1nounexhilarationA rush of excited high spirits.
“She felt a wave of exhilaration as her horse cleared the last fence.”
exhilaration is a feeling.
Latin exhilarare means to gladden, from ex plus hilaris, cheerful.
Ancient Greek
ἱλαρός — cheerful, merry
Proto-Indo-European
*h₁eǵʰs — out
Latin
exhilarō — to delight, to gladden, to make merry
English
exhilarate
English, today
exhilaration
Built from
From exhilarate + -ion. exhilarate comes from Latin exhilarō (“to delight, to gladden, to make merry”), from ex- (“out, away”) (from Proto-Indo-European h₁eǵʰs (“out”)) + hilarō (“to cheer, to gladden”), from hilaris (“cheerful, light-hearted, lively”), from Ancient Greek ἱλαρός (“cheerful, merry”), from ἵλαος (“gracious, kind, propitious”), from Proto-Indo-European selh₂- (“comfort, mercy”). by surface analysis, ex- + hilar(ō) + -ate.
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA