1
as in excited
informal
showing urgent desire or interest
The friends are bonkers about the new video game, and play together for hours at a time.
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in insane
informal + sometimes offensive
unable to think in a clear or sensible way
She spent her last years as a totally bonkers recluse in a decaying mansion.
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of bonkers
There were indelible clutch moments and absolutely bonkers endings.
—
Steven Louis Goldstein, New York Times, 10 Jan. 2026
Tanyard Hill, located next to Coy Hill, is home to four warehouses built in the early ’60s that also apparently yield barrels with truly bonkers levels of alcohol.
—Jonah Flicker, Robb Report, 9 Nov. 2025
Graffiti historian Roger Gastman—who helped orchestrate MOCA’s record-setting Art in the Streets show in 2011—takes over a 40,000-square-foot warehouse on the edge of Chinatown for a totally bonkers street art experience.
—Marielle Wakim, Los Angeles Magazine, 21 June 2018
Hulu’s new show from the creator of Luther is a totally bonkers melange of sci-fi scenarios, global doom, and stabbiness.
—Sophie Gilbert, The Atlantic, 7 Mar. 2018
Steven Louis Goldstein, New York Times, 10 Jan. 2026
Tanyard Hill, located next to Coy Hill, is home to four warehouses built in the early ’60s that also apparently yield barrels with truly bonkers levels of alcohol.
—Jonah Flicker, Robb Report, 9 Nov. 2025
Graffiti historian Roger Gastman—who helped orchestrate MOCA’s record-setting Art in the Streets show in 2011—takes over a 40,000-square-foot warehouse on the edge of Chinatown for a totally bonkers street art experience.
—Marielle Wakim, Los Angeles Magazine, 21 June 2018
Hulu’s new show from the creator of Luther is a totally bonkers melange of sci-fi scenarios, global doom, and stabbiness.
—Sophie Gilbert, The Atlantic, 7 Mar. 2018
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bonkers
Adjective
-
Looking ahead, Matt and Hannah are excited to see where the wind will take them and their business.—
Dallas Morning News,
Dallas Morning News,
23 Feb. 2026
-
Portage Mayor Austin Bonta was excited for Hammond on Thursday despite the Bears not choosing Portage’s Halas Harbor stadium proposal announced last week.—
Alexandra Kukulka,
Chicago Tribune,
20 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Your day-to-day life would be insane!—
Denise Petski,
Deadline,
18 Feb. 2026
-
Defense lawyers had argued during the trial that Taylor was legally insane at the time of the offense.—
Claire Osborn,
Austin American Statesman,
18 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
The pact, part of a realignment of MLB’s sports-rights relationships gives ESPN purview over thousands of games that are made available to fans outside a specific home team’s market — widely seen as some of the most passionate and enthusiastic among followers of the national pastime.—
Brian Steinberg,
Variety,
20 Feb. 2026
-
That’s why the Fed’s minutes are being interpreted by many this morning as being relatively hawkish—meaning that the Federal Open Market Committee is less enthusiastic about cutting interest rates further.—
Jim Edwards,
Fortune,
19 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Get mad enough to change your mind.—
Dan Hyman,
Rolling Stone,
22 Feb. 2026
-
This study not only clarified the date of the burial, which drove archaeologists practically mad, as no one could determine why the dates kept coming back so broadly, but also settled the matter once and for all.—
Maria Mocerino,
Interesting Engineering,
21 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
In addition to his prowess as a musician, Colón was also an avid sociopolitical activist, lending his voice to endorse New York politicians and on the stages of Latino neighborhoods.—
Payton Turkeltaub,
Variety,
21 Feb. 2026
-
An avid field recordist, Kamaru has spoken of running his documentations of his surroundings—buses and bustling markets in Nairobi, sirens and birdsong in Berlin—through various types of digital processing, stretching and mulching and interweaving them with synths until the humdrum becomes musical.—
Philip Sherburne,
Pitchfork,
21 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Embracing these ideas wholeheartedly, Yoshida’s borderline psychotic reimagining of the tale is both highly symbolic and totally riveting.—
Bilge Ebiri,
Vulture,
16 Feb. 2026
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While Hadari is rebranding as YH Studios, his creative voice remains unchanged, clearly influenced by Browne in his fusion of the sartorial with the slightly psychotic.—
Ari Stark,
Footwear News,
11 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
And eager to show his stuff to Team Puerto Rico in the upcoming World Baseball Classic.—
Patrick Saunders,
Denver Post,
25 Feb. 2026
-
Martha Stewart hosted a luncheon at Joe’s Stone Crab, Italian celebrity butcher Dario Cecchini tossed slabs of beef into an eager dinner crowd, and Ray reprised her Burger Bash, where everything from Kool-Aid pickles to foie gras adorned smashed wagyu patties on potato buns.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
24 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Colloquial slang in reverence to the most maniacal competitors.—
Steven Louis Goldstein,
New York Times,
8 Feb. 2026
-
Clearly, a straight line can be drawn from Lola to Moira Rose, the maniacal former soap-opera star, wig enthusiast, and erratic wife/mom on Schitt’s Creek (for which Catherine won an Emmy and a Golden Globe).—
Merrill Markoe,
Rolling Stone,
1 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Bonkers.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bonkers. Accessed 26 Feb. 2026.
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