arousal

noun

arous·​al ə-ˈrau̇-zəl 

plural arousals

1

: the act of arousing someone or something

arousal from sleep

This belated arousal of the hunting instinct seemed to make almost another man of him.

—Jack London

: the state of being aroused

His work with animals had implicated adrenaline and noradrenaline in emotional arousal and memory.

—Daniel Goleman

2

: a state of physiological and psychological excitation caused by sexual contact or other erotic stimulation

Studies show 60% of patients taking the drugs experience some form of sexual dysfunction, ranging from loss of desire to problems with arousal and an inability to reach orgasm.

—Tara Parker-Pope

Examples of arousal in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

To determine why the squirrels don’t experience thirst or look for water during these arousal bouts, Gracheva and her co-researchers ran a bevy of behavioral and molecular experiments. —Lauren Leffer, Popular Science, 28 Nov. 2024

Dark Milk Loves Chocolate These chocolate edibles were explicitly designed for romantic arousal. —Rowan Briggs, The Mercury News, 8 Oct. 2024

In the years since, researchers have come up with a number of underlying factors that might increase a baby’s risk of SIDS, including problems in the part of the brain that controls breathing, abnormal serotonin receptors, and low levels of an enzyme connected to sleep arousal. —Jenny Gold, Los Angeles Times, 9 Sep. 2024

Throughout months of hibernation, these 2-3 week periods of torpor are interspersed with one or two day bouts of arousal. —Lauren Leffer, Popular Science, 28 Nov. 2024

Word History

Etymology

arouse + -al entry 2

First Known Use

1842, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing arousal

• hyper-arousal

Medical Definition

arousal

noun

arous·​al ə-ˈrau̇-zəl 

1

a

: the act of arousing

arousal from sleep

b

: the state of being aroused

specifically : responsiveness to stimuli

… cells of the locus coeruleus, a brain center involved in maintaining attention and arousal …

—Science

2

: a state of physiological and psychological excitation caused by sexual contact or other erotic stimulation

Studies show 60% of patients taking the drugs experience some form of sexual dysfunction, ranging from loss of desire to problems with arousal …

—Tara Parker-Pope, The Wall Street Journal