rage

rage

The word has been in use as a noun since the 14c, but it is perhaps a sign of the times that a special use has developed in the 1980s and 1990s relating to random violent behaviour by frustrated individuals, especially on public roads and motorways. Some of the reported incidents of road rage have led to severe injury and even death. In a disturbing development, we find references to rage in other contexts, above all air rage (violently irate behaviour by passengers in aircraft). Other contexts include cycle rage, golf rage, lane rage (in swimming pools), phone rage (annoyance at being disturbed by mobile phones), spam rage (vindictive anger provoked by unwanted emails), and trolley rage (by shoppers in supermarkets). It remains to be seen which of these achieve any kind of permanency along with the habits they describe.