paroxysm ‘a high point of an action or acuteness of a disease’
Lexical development traced from the Tamil root:
E. paroxysme, paroxism < Med.Lat. paroxysmus ‘irritation, fit of a disease’ < Gk. paroxysmos ‘irritation, exasperation’ < paroxynein ‘to irritate, goad, provoke’ < para- ‘beyond’+ oxynein ‘sharpen, goad’ < oxys ‘sharp, pointed’ < awk < ak < Tamil akku
Other meanings: an outburst of violent controversy; Geology: a violent natural disturbance or catastrophic event, such as an earthquake or volcanic eruptions.