gold-fever
Definition
Noun: - Intense enthusiasm for gold: "Gold-fever" refers to a strong, often obsessive desire to find or acquire gold, especially during a historical gold rush. It describes the excitement and greed that drives people to seek gold, often at great personal risk.
Usage Examples
- (Intense enthusiasm for gold leading to migration.)
- (A sudden, widespread desire to find gold.)
Advanced Usage
- "to catch gold-fever": to become intensely interested in seeking gold.
- After hearing tales of nuggets in the hills, he caught gold-fever and left his job. (He developed an obsessive desire for gold prospecting.)
Variants and Related Words
Gold rush (n): a rapid movement of people to a region where gold has been discovered.
- The Klondike gold rush of the 1890s caused a massive influx of prospectors. (A historical event driven by gold-fever.)
Gold digger (n): a person who mines for gold; also slang for someone who pursues relationships for money.
- He was a true gold digger, panning for hours each day. (A literal gold miner.)
Synonyms
- Avarice: extreme greed for wealth or material gain.
- Prospector’s zeal: enthusiastic energy directed at searching for minerals.
Related Idioms
Strike it rich: to suddenly become wealthy, often through finding gold.
- He hoped to strike it rich in the goldfields. (Become wealthy by discovering gold.)
All that glitters is not gold: a warning that appearances can be deceptive.
- The promise of gold-fever often leads to disappointment, as all that glitters is not gold. (Not everything valuable appears so at first.)