as in demented
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Recent Examples of fey
One of the actors, Mihir Kumar, leads the charge in a monologue that the program notes is drawn from his own life comparing that photo of George to a similarly fey one of himself as a child (both are projected onto a screen at the center of the stage).
—
Jackson McHenry, Vulture, 18 June 2025
Sharp cheekbones, Pan-like movements that were more fey than androgynous.
—Elizabeth Winder, Rolling Stone, 24 July 2023
Not that there was anything fey or fanciful about Austen’s fashion sense: Davidson stresses that Austen’s wardrobe was a hardworking affair.
—Kathryn Hughes, The New York Review of Books, 9 Mar. 2023
Back at work, she is eyed by her co-workers, the wonderfully fey Shane (Griffin Matthews) and the middle-aged worrier Megan (the terrific Rosie Perez).
—Doreen St. Félix, The New Yorker, 28 Dec. 2020
His business rivals include the louche Chinese gangster Dry Eye (Crazy Rich Asians’ Henry Golding) and a drab little ferret of a man called Matthew (Succession star Jeremy Strong, who delivers every line in a sort of strange, fey deadpan).
—Leah Greenblatt, EW.com, 23 Jan. 2020
But on the biographical front, the popular image of Dickinson as a fragile, fey, romantically disappointed recluse has been harder to shake.
—Jennifer Schuessler, New York Times, 30 Oct. 2019
Jackson McHenry, Vulture, 18 June 2025
Sharp cheekbones, Pan-like movements that were more fey than androgynous.
—Elizabeth Winder, Rolling Stone, 24 July 2023
Not that there was anything fey or fanciful about Austen’s fashion sense: Davidson stresses that Austen’s wardrobe was a hardworking affair.
—Kathryn Hughes, The New York Review of Books, 9 Mar. 2023
Back at work, she is eyed by her co-workers, the wonderfully fey Shane (Griffin Matthews) and the middle-aged worrier Megan (the terrific Rosie Perez).
—Doreen St. Félix, The New Yorker, 28 Dec. 2020
His business rivals include the louche Chinese gangster Dry Eye (Crazy Rich Asians’ Henry Golding) and a drab little ferret of a man called Matthew (Succession star Jeremy Strong, who delivers every line in a sort of strange, fey deadpan).
—Leah Greenblatt, EW.com, 23 Jan. 2020
But on the biographical front, the popular image of Dickinson as a fragile, fey, romantically disappointed recluse has been harder to shake.
—Jennifer Schuessler, New York Times, 30 Oct. 2019
Recent Examples of Synonyms for fey
Adjective
-
Setting aside the gawking nature of certain style choices (the warped, swiveling, 360-degree shots used when someone starts talking about particularly demented ideas are nauseating on multiple levels), the series too closely mirrors its subjects’ insularity.—
Ben Travers,
IndieWire,
13 Feb. 2026
-
There are bodily fluids, jeering crowds, and demonic Punch and Judy puppets applauding through the chaos, giving the scene the air of a demented fairy tale.—
Radhika Seth,
Vogue,
9 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
The musical in question is totally nuts, a kind of conspiracist take on September 11th, complete with loopy songs.—
Bilge Ebiri,
Vulture,
31 Jan. 2026
-
The tablecloth was a vibrant bubblegum pink; the menus, hand-written in loopy calligraphy; the stately centerpiece eschewed for a smattering of slim burgundy taper candles pierced ceremoniously through seasonally appropriate pomegranates.—
Elly Leavitt,
Vogue,
19 Dec. 2025
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
-
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
-
Layered beads and mixed textures add to the slightly eccentric energy Anna Sui returns to again and again.—
Daisy Maldonado,
InStyle,
21 Feb. 2026
-
The lineup for Diplo’s HonkyTonk at Stagecoach 2026 has been released, and the guest list is eccentric.—
Bethy Squires,
Vulture,
19 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
Adjective
-
But his heart never leaves these people, and the experience of reading him is of a singular, wry, unstinting sympathy especially for characters at their most blockheaded or deranged.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
11 Feb. 2026
-
The film follows Eileen who, reeling from a breakup, enrols in an intense gym class run by a charismatic but deranged coach.—
Alex Ritman,
Variety,
9 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
People wanted to wear clothes at the cutting edge, which gave dotty fabrics woven by machine a natural fanbase among the society ladies who could afford them.—
Natalie Hammond,
CNN Money,
25 Aug. 2025
-
Jones, Redgrave, and an unrecognizable Margot Kidder as their dotty landlady bravely expose their vulnerability.—
Armond White,
National Review,
25 June 2025
Adjective
-
Symptoms from an unbalanced gut aren’t limited to your stomach and digestive system.—
Rena Goldman,
Health,
17 Feb. 2026
-
In the short track 500 meters, Santos-Griswold made it to the semifinal, only to hit an inside block with her skate and become unbalanced and fall behind.—
Lori Riley,
Hartford Courant,
14 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Fey.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fey. Accessed 22 Feb. 2026.
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