amok.
Out of control, especially when armed and dangerous.
Meaning & usage
Out of control, especially when armed and dangerous.
In a frenzy of violence, or on a killing spree; berserk.
Where this word comes from
Borrowed from Portuguese amouco, from Malay amuk (“to go on a killing spree”). The term first appeared in English around the 16th century, associated with the people of Malaysia and Java, first described in the 1516 text The Book of Duarte Barbosa, which was translated to English by Henry E. J. Stanley.
One who runs amok; in Malay and Moro/Philippine culture, one who attempts to kill many others, especially expecting that they will be killed themselves.
The act of running amok.
Where this word comes from
Borrowed from Portuguese amouco, from Malay amuk (“to go on a killing spree”). The term first appeared in English around the 16th century, associated with the people of Malaysia and Java, first described in the 1516 text The Book of Duarte Barbosa, which was translated to English by Henry E. J. Stanley.
Synonym of run amok.
Where this word comes from
Borrowed from Portuguese amouco, from Malay amuk (“to go on a killing spree”). The term first appeared in English around the 16th century, associated with the people of Malaysia and Java, first described in the 1516 text The Book of Duarte Barbosa, which was translated to English by Henry E. J. Stanley.
A kind of Southeast Asian curry steamed in banana leaves native to Cambodia.
Where this word comes from
Borrowed from Khmer អាម៉ុក (ʼaamok, “to steam in banana leaves”).
Try it on your idea.
amok has 4 characters. Say it out loud, try it alongside a description of your project, and see whether its meaning fits what you want to create.
These are naming prompts. Meanings and pronunciation can vary; existing brand and domain uses have not been checked.
Explore the name generatorA word with a source.
Definitions, grammatical labels, IPA, etymology and examples: Wiktionary contributors, extracted by Kaikki / Wiktextract. Adapted under CC BY-SA 4.0. Selected fields and authored examples are shown; third-party quotations and audio are omitted. See contributor history.
Last enriched 2026-09-10. Definitions are in English. Romanizations are shown when supplied by the source; syllable estimates are omitted for unsupported scripts.