as in nervous breakdown
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Recent Examples of basket case
Naím was once, in a happier day, the finance minister of Venezuela, and Hugo Chávez, who took a troubled but essentially prosperous country with a long democratic tradition and turned it into an international basket case, comes in for close study.
—
Adam Gopnik, The New Yorker, 16 May 2022
When China was an economic basket case, 100 miles of ocean was more than enough deterrent.
—Roger Wicker, WSJ, 4 May 2022
The village was literally a basket case, bereft of water, food and all hope.
—Steve West, Sun Sentinel, 21 Apr. 2022
Venezuela, another socialist basket case, slips to the second-most-miserable country in the world after six years in the pole position.
—Steve H. Hanke, National Review, 16 Mar. 2022
See All Example Sentences for basket case
Adam Gopnik, The New Yorker, 16 May 2022
When China was an economic basket case, 100 miles of ocean was more than enough deterrent.
—Roger Wicker, WSJ, 4 May 2022
The village was literally a basket case, bereft of water, food and all hope.
—Steve West, Sun Sentinel, 21 Apr. 2022
Venezuela, another socialist basket case, slips to the second-most-miserable country in the world after six years in the pole position.
—Steve H. Hanke, National Review, 16 Mar. 2022
See All Example Sentences for basket case
Recent Examples of Synonyms for basket case
Noun
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Schmitt suffers a nervous breakdown after his arrogance (and Webber’s long leash on the residency program) leads to him killing a podcaster on the operating table and these two break up again.—
Maggie Fremont,
Vulture,
9 Oct. 2025
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But, of course, the producers didn't want Caroline to have a nervous breakdown.—
Jordan Hoffman,
Entertainment Weekly,
23 Sep. 2025
Noun
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The nation’s third shutdown in 12 years has again raised anxiety levels among service members and their families as those in uniform are working without pay.—
Fortune,
Fortune,
11 Oct. 2025
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In the book, she's portrayed as someone suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder and on anxiety medication, both of which are used to discredit her and paint her as unwell.—
Rebecca Aizin,
PEOPLE,
11 Oct. 2025
Noun
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When a person opens the drawer and places a baby in the bassinet inside, three separate alarms sound to alert first responders, and an orange bag falls out with information about what rights a parent has, and what a mother’s body experiences after birth.—
Alana Semuels,
Time,
8 Oct. 2025
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Travel insiders are sounding the alarm over a travel scam that could affect airline passengers who check a bag.—
Michael Cappetta,
Travel + Leisure,
8 Oct. 2025
Noun
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The sound that accompanies his subsequent mechanical breakdown is every bit as nauseating as the show's more organic moments.—
Richard Edwards,
Space.com,
8 Oct. 2025
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Here’s a breakdown to help separate fact from fiction.—
Elizabeth Yuko,
Rolling Stone,
8 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Basket case.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/basket%20case. Accessed 14 Oct. 2025.
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