loose cannon
nounDefinition of loose cannon
Examples of loose cannon in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
But Byrne was known as a bit of a loose cannon well before Bitcoin was invented, most notably for his aggressive (and also frequently conspiratorial) campaign against naked short sellers. — David Z. Morris, Fortune, "A Spy in the House of Byrne—The Ledger," 26 Aug. 2019 Is your husband a loose cannon, a drunk, a misogynist, a verbal abuser? — Abigail Van Buren, Houston Chronicle, "Wife is caught in the middle of family’s rift with husband," 13 July 2019 Is your husband a loose cannon, a drunk, a misogynist, a verbal abuser? — Dear Abby, oregonlive.com, "Dear Abby: Derogatory comment tears family apart," 14 July 2019 Their mission goes off with only one tiny hitch: While in space, Jean is irradiated with some kind of strange cosmic energy, rendering her even more powerful – and, unfortunately, more of a loose cannon – than before. — The Washington Post, The Mercury News, "Review: If it’s the final X-Men chapter, ‘Dark Phoenix’ is appropriately funereal," 7 June 2019 Their mission goes off with only one tiny hitch: While in space, Jean is irradiated with some kind of strange cosmic energy, rendering her even more powerful — and, unfortunately, more of a loose cannon — than before. — Michael O'sullivan, Twin Cities, "‘Dark Phoenix,’ X-Men’s probable swan song, is a dirge," 6 June 2019 In other words, when women act aggressively, they are seen as loose cannons, while men look passionate and continue to get work. — Jessica Wakeman, Glamour, "Men Who Scream at Work Aren't "Passionate." They're Abusive.," 4 Sep. 2018 The old loose cannon, as he's known in political circles, was back. — Lorraine Ali, latimes.com, "Kanye West and Rudy Giuliani: The mouths that recklessly roared," 5 May 2018 Hernandez, who has long been a buff of Civil War history, is not a loose cannon. — Dom Amore, courant.com, "He's Keith Hernandez ....And He's Got Stories," 8 June 2018These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'loose cannon.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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From the Editors at Merriam-Webster
Why Do We Call a Dangerous Person a...
Why Do We Call a Dangerous Person a 'Loose Cannon'?
Blame Teddy Roosevelt
Dictionary Entries near loose cannon
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Last Updated
2 Sep 2019
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The first known use of loose cannon was in 1889
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