Suffix · forms nouns
From Greek "mania" (madness, obsession): names a compulsive obsession or extreme passion. Kleptomania.
Written by Bryan López, English teacher · Updated
The suffix -mania comes from Greek "mania" (madness, frenzy) and names an obsession, compulsion or extreme passion toward something. From "klepto-" (steal) comes "kleptomania"; from "pyro-" (fire) comes "pyromania". Spanish cognates are almost identical: kleptomania → cleptomanía, pyromania → piromanía, megalomania → megalomanía.
-mania has two registers: Clinical/psychiatric: kleptomania (compulsion to steal), pyromania (compulsion to set fires), dipsomania (compulsive alcoholism), monomania (obsession with a single idea). Popular/informal: Beatlemania (extreme Beatles fandom), Linsanity, bikemania. In this use, -mania simply means extreme enthusiasm, not a disorder. "Soccer mania swept the country."
From -mania derive: -mania = the obsession (pyromania) -maniac = the obsessed person (pyromaniac) -maniacal = the adjective (maniacal laughter) megalomania → megalomaniac: someone who believes they have extreme power or importance. kleptomania → kleptomaniac: someone with a compulsion to steal.
Greek/Latin root (object of the obsession) + mania.
Family: -mania (disorder/passion), -maniac (person), -maniacal (adjective). In psychiatry, "mania" alone is also an extreme state of hyperactivity/euphoria (as in bipolar disorder).
-mania/ˈmeɪniə/ · sounds like 'MAY-nee-uh'
Tap the button to hear how the ending sounds. Each word in the table has its own audio.
They are opposites: "pyromania" = obsession with fire (attraction). "pyrophobia" = fear of fire (repulsion). The same object can generate a -mania or a -phobia.
"Kleptomaniac" is not just a thief: it is someone who steals compulsively without financial gain, due to a psychological disorder. Use the term clinically, not as an insult.
"Maniac" carries strong negative connotations. "He drives like a maniac" = he drives dangerously. Fine informally, but it has weight in serious contexts.
A trick to remember it
-mania = obsession or compulsion toward something. The first part names the object: klepto- (stealing), pyro- (fire), megalo- (greatness). Family: -maniac (person), -maniacal (adjective). Opposite: -phobia (fear of the same object).
Exercise 1 · Form the word
Exercise 2 · Pick the right one
What is the difference between -mania and -phobia?
Exercise 3 · Pick the right one
A "megalomaniac" is someone who...
The suffix -mania from Greek "mania" (madness, obsession): names a compulsive obsession or extreme passion. Kleptomania. In Spanish it usually maps to -manía.
The ending -mania is pronounced /ˈmeɪniə/ · sounds like 'MAY-nee-uh'. For example, "kleptomania".
"klepto (steal)" becomes "kleptomania". It is a typical example of the -mania suffix.
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