haywire 1 of 2

adjective

ˈhā-ˌwī(-ə)r How to pronounce haywire (audio)
Definition of haywirenext
1
as in down
not being in working order The website went haywire when it was overloaded with visitors seeking tickets.

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in mad
unable to think in a clear or sensible way She gradually went haywire with grief after the tragic death of her husband.

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

haywire

2 of 2

adverb

as in uncontrollably

Related Words

Dissimilar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of haywire
Adverb
Robot meltdown — The LLMs also sometimes went haywire in unexpected ways. — Billy Perrigo, Time, 28 Oct. 2025 The Baltimore Orioles' season went haywire fast after a disappointing offseason that saw ace Corbin Burnes walk, and with no real replacement added to their pitching staff. — Hunter Mulholland, MSNBC Newsweek, 22 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for haywire
  1. down
  2. mad
  3. uncontrollably
  4. malfunctioning
  5. psychotic
  6. crazily
  7. broken
  8. insane
Adjective
  • Either squad could have plausibly won the 2021 Western Conference in a relatively down year.
    — John Hollinger, New York Times, 3 Sep. 2026
  • An investor sees the breadth divergence, watches the failed breakouts and notices the heavier down-volume, but then waits for a headline to confirm what the price data has already said.
    — Thomas Hartmann, Forbes.com, 2 Sep. 2026
Definition of down
Adjective
  • Crowder would not have been that mad if the guy had just fessed up and said something normal in his own voice.
    — Kaitlyn Tiffany, The Atlantic, 4 Sep. 2026
  • But, as mad as the idea may have seemed back then, the tradition is still going strong 40 years later with participants coming from around the world to cast their dignity aside — along with a warm robe — and take the plunge into the freezing water.
    — Rob Tanner, New York Times, 3 Sep. 2026
Definition of mad
Adverb
  • Alpha 1, who’s most strict about the disease’s suppression, lashes out uncontrollably.
    — Cortlyn Kelly, IndieWire, 8 Sep. 2026
  • Meanwhile, wildfires have been blazing uncontrollably, most notably this week in the New Forest in southern England.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 13 Aug. 2026
Definition of uncontrollably
Adjective
  • Homeowners reported a swift meeting at which officers discussed a reorganization of their specific duties and the hiring of an elevator expert to fix the chronically malfunctioning, overloaded elevators.
    — Linda Robertson, Miami Herald, 15 Aug. 2026
  • Watching the first episode of Ultimate Girl’s Trip is like riding in a malfunctioning time machine.
    — Brian Moylan, Vulture, 10 Aug. 2026
Definition of malfunctioning
Adjective
  • Her defense, however, argued that Clancy killed her children after suffering a postpartum psychotic break.
    — Jon Blistein, Rolling Stone, 8 Sep. 2026
  • The defense would have benefitted from calling a specialist in postpartum mood disorders to explain how easily psychotic symptoms can be missed in high-functioning new mothers.
    — Eren Orbey, New Yorker, 4 Sep. 2026
Definition of psychotic
Adverb
  • And when Andreeva hits one of her crazily creative shots and turns to Martínez for praise, she is met with a smile, and maybe some clapping.
    — Matthew Futterman, New York Times, 4 June 2026
  • The scene used one of the film’s funniest visual gags, an apartment so crazily tilted that nobody inside it could stand up straight.
    — Emily Nussbaum, New Yorker, 17 May 2026
Definition of crazily
Adjective
  • Something happened when Chris Paul got his hand caught in a Portland Trail Blazers player’s jersey, ending the 2016 playoff run with a broken bone.
    — Law Murray, New York Times, 4 Sep. 2026
  • Local authorities said the 44-year-old woman suffered several broken bones in Monday morning's crash in Prospect Park but survived after roughly six bystanders joined officers to lift the vehicle and pull her to safety, FOX 29 reported.
    — Michael Sinkewicz, FOXNews.com, 4 Sep. 2026
Definition of broken
Adjective
  • My first two videos each passed 100,000 views, which felt absolutely insane for a brand-new channel.
    — Elizabeth Gulino, Allure, 9 Sep. 2026
  • The crack epidemic in America, especially in Bed-Stuy, was insane, so that really implanted into my brain.
    — Selome Hailu, Variety, 8 Sep. 2026
Definition of insane

Browse Nearby Words

hayseed
haywire
hazard
See all Nearby Words

Podcast

Cite this Entry

“Haywire.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/haywire. Accessed 12 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of hobnob

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Back to School Vocabulary

Words from the 'Odyssey'

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of
See More

Popular

See More

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Back to School Vocabulary
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
funny guinea pig in glasses reading a book
Challenging Words You Should Know Vol 2 Words to the wise
See All