What is the meaning of the phrase ‘fever pitch’?
A state of intense excitement.
What is the origin of the phrase ‘fever pitch’?
The word ‘pitch’, when it’s used in the sense of a high level (or height on a scale, or in a figurative sense), is believed to date back to the mid 1500s. However, according to Merriam-Webster Online, the first recorded use of the phrase ‘fever pitch’ comes much later in the year 1846. But, the Oxford English Dictionary dates the first recorded use earlier again, attributing it to Courier, London in 1837.
That said however, there’s also another citing from the year 1837. The famous nineteenth century author Walter Scott, in conversation with his biographer (and son-in-law) John Lockhart. Scott is quoted as saying “Ay, it was enough to tear me to pieces, but there was a wonderful exhilaration about it all: my blood was kept at fever-pitch”. The biography was published in 1837, but the actual conversation is believed to date back to somewhere between 1808 and Scott’s death in 1832.
Used in the latter manner, the phrase has face validity, because when someone has a fever, this gets their heart beating faster, reminiscent of feeling a state of intense excitement.
What are some notable uses of the phrase ‘fever pitch’?
There was a book called Fever Pitch written by British author Nick Hornby and published in 1992, about Hornby’s experiences as a soccer fan. The book’s title is a play on words, because in the UK a soccer field is sometimes called a football pitch. There were later two films called Fever Pitch based on the book, one released in the UK in 1997, and one released in the US in 2007.
There was also a film called ‘Fever Pitch’ that was released in 2005. This time it was a romantic comedy starring Drew Barrymore and Jimmy Fallon. There has also been an instrumental track called Fever Pitch by Nick Ingam, released in 1979.
