lunatic fringe
noun
: the members of a usually political or social movement espousing extreme, eccentric, or fanatical views
Examples of lunatic fringe in a Sentence
His nomination is opposed by the party's lunatic fringe.
Recent Examples on the Web
Like a crazy right wing lunatic fringe like Josh Hawley.
—
Staff Reports, cleveland, 7 Aug. 2023
And then on Wednesday, Mace voted with much of her party’s lunatic fringe—Matt Gaetz, Andy Biggs, Ken Buck—against the deal to raise the debt ceiling struck by House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and President Joe Biden.
—Alex Shephard, The New Republic, 2 June 2023
Or worse, the lunatic fringe.
—William Cummings, USA TODAY, 28 Dec. 2020
Trump has made this the centerpiece of his faux presidential campaign, falling further and further into the land of the lunatic fringe.
—Keith Kloor, Discover Magazine, 9 Apr. 2011
An Executive Council meeting at the college, where the state was to formally accept $27 million in federal vaccine aid, was canceled after it was hijacked by a bunch of lunatic fringe antivaxxers.
—BostonGlobe.com, 30 Sep. 2021
Davis endured nasty and sometimes threatening letters from a true lunatic fringe.
—Scott Ostler, San Francisco Chronicle, 29 May 2021
And yet, in recent months, the lab leak thesis has inched its way from the lunatic fringe towards the credible center of American public discourse.
—Eamon Barrett, Fortune, 25 May 2021
Republicans disavow their lunatic fringe just enough to create a prophylactic of plausible deniability, while allowing the tumors to metastasize.
—Alyson Cole, Fortune, 4 Mar. 2021
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Staff Reports, cleveland, 7 Aug. 2023
And then on Wednesday, Mace voted with much of her party’s lunatic fringe—Matt Gaetz, Andy Biggs, Ken Buck—against the deal to raise the debt ceiling struck by House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and President Joe Biden.
—Alex Shephard, The New Republic, 2 June 2023
Or worse, the lunatic fringe.
—William Cummings, USA TODAY, 28 Dec. 2020
Trump has made this the centerpiece of his faux presidential campaign, falling further and further into the land of the lunatic fringe.
—Keith Kloor, Discover Magazine, 9 Apr. 2011
An Executive Council meeting at the college, where the state was to formally accept $27 million in federal vaccine aid, was canceled after it was hijacked by a bunch of lunatic fringe antivaxxers.
—BostonGlobe.com, 30 Sep. 2021
Davis endured nasty and sometimes threatening letters from a true lunatic fringe.
—Scott Ostler, San Francisco Chronicle, 29 May 2021
And yet, in recent months, the lab leak thesis has inched its way from the lunatic fringe towards the credible center of American public discourse.
—Eamon Barrett, Fortune, 25 May 2021
Republicans disavow their lunatic fringe just enough to create a prophylactic of plausible deniability, while allowing the tumors to metastasize.
—Alyson Cole, Fortune, 4 Mar. 2021
See More
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'lunatic fringe.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
First Known Use
1913, in the meaning defined above
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Dictionary Entries Near lunatic fringe
Cite this Entry
“Lunatic fringe.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/lunatic%20fringe. Accessed 4 Dec. 2023.
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