conniption n.

mid-14c., corrupcioun, of material things, especially dead bodies, "act of becoming putrid, dissolution, decay;" also of the soul, morals, etc., "spiritual contamination, depravity, wickedness," from Latin corruptionem (nominative corruptio) "a corruption, spoiling, seducing; a corrupt condition," noun of action from past-participle stem of corrumpere "to destroy; spoil," figuratively "corrupt, seduce, bribe" (see corrupt (adj.)).

Meaning "putrid matter" is from late 14c. Of public offices, "bribery or other depraving influence," from early 15c.; of language, "perversion, vitiation," from late 15c. Meaning "a corrupt form of a word" is from 1690s.

"apt to notice and make much of unimportant faults or flaws," c. 1400, capcyus, from Latin captiosus "fallacious," from captionem (nominative captio) "a deceiving, fallacious argument," literally "a taking (in)," from captus, past participle of capere "to take, catch" (from PIE root *kap- "to grasp"). Related: Captiously; captiousness.