Category:Lunatic

Lu"na*tic, a. Etym: [F. lunatique, L. lunaticus, fr. luna the moon. See Lunar.]

1. Affected by lunacy; insane; mad. Lord, have mercy on my son; for he is lunatic. Wyclif (Matthew 17:15).

2. Of or pertaining to, or suitable for, an insane person; evincing lunacy; as, lunatic gibberish; a lunatic asylum.

lunatic Lu"na*tic, n.

Defn: A person affected by lunacy; an insane person, esp. one who has lucid intervals; a madman; a person of unsound mind. The lunatic, the lover, and the poet, Are of imagination all compact. Shak.

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---excerpt from the Illustrated Bible Dictionary

Lunatic - Probably the same as epileptic, the symptoms of which disease were supposed to be more aggravated as the moon increased. In Matthew 4:24 "lunatics" are distinguished from demoniacs. In Matthew 17:15 the name "lunatic" is applied to one who is declared to have been possessed. (See DAEMONIAC.)