as in nervous breakdown
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Recent Examples of basket case
His main accomplishment was to transform the country by giving us Joe Biden who then transformed the country into a basket case.
—
Peter Lucas, Boston Herald, 16 Oct. 2025
Over the course of their day together, Claire the princess (Ringwald), Andrew the jock (Estevez), Brian the brain (Hall), Allison the basket case (Sheedy) and John the criminal (Nelson) begin to drop their stereotypical public facades and reveal their private struggles.
—Pamela McClintock, HollywoodReporter, 16 Aug. 2025
The Breakfast Club stars Molly Ringwald (Claire, the princess), Emilio Estevez (Andrew, the athlete), Judd Nelson (John, the criminal), Ally Sheedy (Allison, the basket case), and Anthony Michael Hall (Brian, the brain).
—Althea Legaspi, Rolling Stone, 16 Aug. 2025
Communist China was a basket case under one-man rule.
—Michael Schuman, The Atlantic, 21 June 2022
See All Example Sentences for basket case
Peter Lucas, Boston Herald, 16 Oct. 2025
Over the course of their day together, Claire the princess (Ringwald), Andrew the jock (Estevez), Brian the brain (Hall), Allison the basket case (Sheedy) and John the criminal (Nelson) begin to drop their stereotypical public facades and reveal their private struggles.
—Pamela McClintock, HollywoodReporter, 16 Aug. 2025
The Breakfast Club stars Molly Ringwald (Claire, the princess), Emilio Estevez (Andrew, the athlete), Judd Nelson (John, the criminal), Ally Sheedy (Allison, the basket case), and Anthony Michael Hall (Brian, the brain).
—Althea Legaspi, Rolling Stone, 16 Aug. 2025
Communist China was a basket case under one-man rule.
—Michael Schuman, The Atlantic, 21 June 2022
See All Example Sentences for basket case
Recent Examples of Synonyms for basket case
Noun
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Dern played a troubled sales executive who moves back in with her mom after a nervous breakdown at the office.—
Meriam Bouarrouj,
NBC news,
3 Nov. 2025
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Lane is on the verge of a nervous breakdown.—
Lily Meyer,
The Atlantic,
31 Oct. 2025
Noun
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The attendees—thirty- and forty-somethings who are members of the bank’s Private Wealth Management (PWM) division, which boasts an average account size of over $75 million—gathered to hash out their anxiety and excitement.—
Emma Burleigh,
Fortune,
9 Nov. 2025
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Barton will have to wait another month to receive his sentence for the six guilty counts the jury returned on charges of sending a grossly offensive electronic communication with intent to cause distress or anxiety to football broadcasters Eni Aluko and Lucy Ward, and TV and radio host Jeremy Vine.—
Greg O'Keeffe,
New York Times,
9 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
In Los Angeles this past year, the Red Cross installed more than 3,000 smoke alarms.—
Jasmine Viel,
CBS News,
9 Jan. 2026
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Continue reading … POLITICS SHADOW MILITIA – 'Irregular' armed guards aboard Russian shadow tankers alarm Nordic-Baltic governments.—
,
FOXNews.com,
8 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Three breakdowns appear repeatedly.—
Katerin Le Folcalvez,
Fortune,
8 Jan. 2026
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Boston led late in the first half, but Denver capitalized on a rebounding breakdown to pull even.—
Zack Cox,
Boston Herald,
8 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Basket case.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/basket%20case. Accessed 11 Jan. 2026.
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