Meanings
- uncountableA rare disorder involving an exaggerated startle reflex which may be described as an uncontrollable jump.
Synonyms: jumping disease
Synonyms & antonyms
nounA rare disorder involving an exaggerated startle reflex which may be described as an uncontrollable jump.
Origin
From the name given to a group of 19th-century lumberjacks who exhibited this disorder.
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
jumping Frenchmen of Maine syndrome. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/jumping%20Frenchmen%20of%20Maine%20syndrome
“jumping Frenchmen of Maine syndrome.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/jumping%20Frenchmen%20of%20Maine%20syndrome. Accessed November 5, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “jumping Frenchmen of Maine syndrome,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/jumping%20Frenchmen%20of%20Maine%20syndrome.
Source: jumping Frenchmen of Maine syndrome on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.