go ballistic

phrase

informal

1

: to become very angry

Dad went ballistic when he saw the dent in his car.

2

US : to become very excited

The crowd was going ballistic as the runner took the lead.

Examples of go ballistic in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

When everything goes ballistic, the film adopts a pace similar to the rollercoaster Italian ghost films of the 1980s. — Declan Gallagher, Entertainment Weekly, 7 July 2026

The Wolverines faithful in the crowd went ballistic, knowing how much that basket meant considering what UConn has been able to do in this tournament. — Scott Thompson, FOXNews.com, 7 Apr. 2026

People went ballistic—cursing, yelling, screaming, all kinds of threats. — Andrew Norman Wilson, Harpers Magazine, 24 Feb. 2026

While lead singer Dun perches on top of a piano, the four friends, and a packed festival grounds around them, go ballistic. — Joe Sills, Forbes.com, 23 Feb. 2026

Rhymes for go ballistic

• agonistic
• altruistic
• animistic
• aphoristic
• atheistic
• atomistic
• cabalistic
• calvinistic
• chauvinistic
• dualistic
• egoistic
• egotistic