as in half-baked
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Recent Examples of half-cocked
His paranoia, played with clumsy charm by a mustachioed and bleary-eyed Leonardo DiCaprio, is half-cocked and somewhat comical.
—
David Sims, The Atlantic, 18 Sep. 2025
That cycle has lasted decades, a past strewn with half-cocked plans, bankruptcies, struggling businesses, recriminations, and a neighborhood that refuses to give up on itself or surrender its personality.
—Justin Davidson, Curbed, 21 May 2025
And yet, all of a sudden, there was the commotion typical of when a manager walks into a room deep in a stadium as reporters rush to put their phones on the desk and stumble awkwardly, laptops half-cocked, back to their seats.
—James Horncastle, The Athletic, 30 Dec. 2024
The way reason permeated the front offices has bled onto the field, and the players are more reasonable, more rational and not likely to go off half-cocked.
—Ryan Gaydos, Fox News, 25 Sep. 2024
David Sims, The Atlantic, 18 Sep. 2025
That cycle has lasted decades, a past strewn with half-cocked plans, bankruptcies, struggling businesses, recriminations, and a neighborhood that refuses to give up on itself or surrender its personality.
—Justin Davidson, Curbed, 21 May 2025
And yet, all of a sudden, there was the commotion typical of when a manager walks into a room deep in a stadium as reporters rush to put their phones on the desk and stumble awkwardly, laptops half-cocked, back to their seats.
—James Horncastle, The Athletic, 30 Dec. 2024
The way reason permeated the front offices has bled onto the field, and the players are more reasonable, more rational and not likely to go off half-cocked.
—Ryan Gaydos, Fox News, 25 Sep. 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for half-cocked
Adjective
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The many creaky, half-baked aspects of Shelby Oaks are all the more frustrating when one remembers the film’s solid start, the specific point of view that gradually gives way to Stuckmann’s plodding recitation of hoary horror-movie staples.—
Richard Lawson,
HollywoodReporter,
21 Oct. 2025
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Jokes have setups and punchlines; this was merely half-baked political analysis.—
Matt Fleming,
Oc Register,
25 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Other segments feature a woman being stalked by telephone and a nurse whose decision to steal a ring from a corpse turns out to be very ill-advised.—
Katie Rife,
Entertainment Weekly,
30 Oct. 2025
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Gabe Landeskog’s backwards pass toward center ice was ill-advised and picked off by Jarvis, who didn’t waste a 1-on-1 opportunity against Wedgewood.—
Kyle Newman,
Denver Post,
24 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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Small, unauthorized charges can be early signs of fraud.—
Kurt Knutsson,
FOXNews.com,
2 Nov. 2025
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The city passed new rules in April quadrupling the fines on developers for unauthorized cutting of trees.—
Harrison Mantas,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
31 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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These mutations can be spontaneous, but the paternal age of a sperm donor can also be a factor.—
Chelsea Bailey,
CNN Money,
25 Oct. 2025
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The piece signals transformation, but the spontaneous laugh turns luxury into connection; by the red-gown reveal, the necklace reads less like a trophy and more like a charm that’s worked.—
Lilah Ramzi,
Vogue,
25 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
Not home in the physical sense, but in the ancestral one — that instinctive recognition that lives in the bones.—
Shelby Stewart,
Essence,
22 Oct. 2025
-
In Warhead, Wright explains how armed conflict impacts every part of our brain, from the instinctive reflexes of our reptilian brainstem to the cognitive and metacognitive functions of the prefrontal cortex.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
18 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Half-cocked.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/half-cocked. Accessed 5 Nov. 2025.
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