have a fit

To become very or unreasonably angry or upset; to have an outburst of rage, frustration, or ill temper. My mom's going to have a fit when she sees what happened to the car! I was so embarrassed when Danny started having a fit in the grocery store. There's no need to have a fit about this, Eleanor—we'll figure something out.

See also: fit, have

have a fit

and throw a fit

to be very angry; to show great anger. The teacher had a fit when the dog ran through the classroom. John threw a fit when he found his car had been damaged.

See also: fit, have

have a fit

Also, have fits or a conniption fit ; take or throw a fit ; have kittens. Become extremely upset. For example, She'll have a fit when she sees Anne wearing the same dress, or Mom had a conniption fit when she heard about the broken mirror, or Don't take a fit-the car's not really damaged, or Jill was having kittens over the spoiled cake. One can also give someone a fit or fits , as in His dithering about punctuation is enough to give me fits. Fit and fits, along with conniption fit, have been used in hyperbolic expressions to denote a bout of hysterics since the 1830s; throw a fit was first recorded in 1906, and have a fit in 1924; have kittens, alluding to being so upset as to bear kittens, also dates from about 1900.

See also: fit, have

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. Copyright © 2003, 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

have a fit

throw a fit

COMMON If someone has a fit or throws a fit, they become very angry and upset. Note: In the first two idioms here, `fit' means healthy and full of energy. Mum will have a fit when he hears about this. She threw a fit when she found me in the dressing room.

See also: fit, have

have/throw a ˈfit

(informal) become very excited or angry: Your father will throw a fit when he sees you’ve broken yet another window!