Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English homepage

Date: 1900-2000
Origin: Partly from psychoanalyze and partly from psych-

psych

1 verb
     
psych1

psych somebody ↔ out

phrasal verb
informal to do or say things that will make your opponent in a game or competition feel nervous or confused, so that it is easier for you to win

psych somebody up

phrasal verb
if you psych yourself up or if someone psychs you up, you get mentally prepared before doing something so that you feel confident
psych yourself up (for something)
We both knew we had to psych ourselves up for the race.
Definition from the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
Advanced Learner's Dictionary.

Dictionary pictures of the day
Do you know what each of these is called?
What is the word for picture 1? What is the word for picture 2? What is the word for picture 3? What is the word for picture 4?
Click on any of the pictures above to find out what it is called.

Explore our topic dictionary

Browse the dictionary