the extreme excitement and greed caused by a gold rush
gold fever in American English
noun
greed and excitement caused by a gold rush
Word origin
[1840–50]This word is first recorded in the period 1840–50. Other words that entered Englishat around the same time include: flan, layout, organizer, set piece, warmup
Examples of 'gold fever' in a sentence
gold fever
Instead we found a campsite full of people with genuine gold fever.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
The gold fever grips you the minute you enter that place.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
Filthy as bilge water and treacherous with gold fever.
Times, Sunday Times (2008)
But once you've discovered it, gold fever seems to infect everyone around it.