unhinged

adjective

un·​hinged ˌən-ˈhinjd 

: highly disturbed, unstable, or distraught

attacked by an unhinged extremist

Somewhere along the way, her pursuit of a hot guy turned into unhinged obsession.

—Cosmopolitan

"Is this a new brand of humour? Or is your brain really unhinged?" inquired Tommy.

—Agatha Christie

see also unhinge

Synonyms

• psychotic [sometimes offensive]
• insane
• mad
• maniacal
• maniac
• crazy [usually offensive]
• mental [sometimes offensive]

Examples of unhinged in a Sentence

destined to become one of the nation's most notorious serial killers, he apparently became unhinged as a result of being abandoned as a young teen

Recent Examples on the Web

But that was when an unhinged shooter traveled across the country with an automatic rifle, stormed an East Side office tower and shot to death four people, including an NYPD officer working a security detail. —Leonard Greene, New York Daily News, 4 Aug. 2025

Charmingly unhinged, Nicholson is likable enough to root a little for the antagonist. —Brian Truitt, USA Today, 1 Aug. 2025

All the while, stood for the importance of scientists speaking out, and providing the public, even amid the unhinged persecution of the red scare, choices for a better world. —Dan Vergano, Scientific American, 1 Aug. 2025

In the role of a comically unhinged doctor from the World Health Organization, Nadia Pillay wields an oversized syringe and scatters a barrage of pharmaceutical samples at the bewildered children. —Emily McClanathan, Chicago Tribune, 24 July 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1652, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for unhinged

• cringed
• fringed
• hinged
• singed
• impinged
• infringed