as in commotion
a state of noisy, confused activity
lost sight of his children in all the hurly-burly of the fair
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Recent Examples of hurly-burly
Rosenblatt now lives in a gray, semidetached Victorian house on a somnolent road just off the hurly-burly of a North London high street.
—
John Lahr, New Yorker, 9 Mar. 2026
But mostly for my parents, who had worked so hard for so many years to create a refuge from the hurly-burly of the outside world.
—James Rainey, Los Angeles Times, 12 Jan. 2025
Mustard admires the fact that, rather than engage in the hurly-burly of social media, Lamar will disappear from public view for long stretches of time.
—Tribune News Service, Boston Herald, 22 Aug. 2024
Trump Has Promised to Do in a Second Term
Compounding all of this household hurly-burly is the fact that Suada has stage 4 pancreatic cancer.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 3 Apr. 2024
The image’s low contrast and lack of sharpness suggest that it was snapped from the hurly-burly of the piazza.
—Paul Elie, The New Yorker, 14 Nov. 2023
In the hurly-burly of a modern economy, people are constantly being hurt by economic changes beyond their control.
—Alan S. Blinder, Foreign Affairs, 11 Dec. 2018
John Lahr, New Yorker, 9 Mar. 2026
But mostly for my parents, who had worked so hard for so many years to create a refuge from the hurly-burly of the outside world.
—James Rainey, Los Angeles Times, 12 Jan. 2025
Mustard admires the fact that, rather than engage in the hurly-burly of social media, Lamar will disappear from public view for long stretches of time.
—Tribune News Service, Boston Herald, 22 Aug. 2024
Trump Has Promised to Do in a Second Term
Compounding all of this household hurly-burly is the fact that Suada has stage 4 pancreatic cancer.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 3 Apr. 2024
The image’s low contrast and lack of sharpness suggest that it was snapped from the hurly-burly of the piazza.
—Paul Elie, The New Yorker, 14 Nov. 2023
In the hurly-burly of a modern economy, people are constantly being hurt by economic changes beyond their control.
—Alan S. Blinder, Foreign Affairs, 11 Dec. 2018
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hurly-burly
Noun
-
Then there was silence, followed by sounds of a commotion.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
11 June 2026
-
While most of those visitors are coming with good intentions, there’s always the possibility that bad actors will take advantage of the crowds and commotion to cause damage and inflict harm.—
Matthew Adams,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
10 June 2026
Noun
-
Two teens detained in Lee’s Summit In Lee’s Summit, police spent nearly two hours breaking up a series of incidents and disturbances involving teenagers at the city’s Downtown Days festival Saturday night.—
Ben Wheeler,
Kansas City Star,
8 June 2026
-
Oriyomi was issued a trespass warning and allegedly caused a disturbance by recording officers with his phone before leaving the airport, per court documents.—
Mirna Alsharif,
NBC news,
7 June 2026
Noun
-
Options trading in the fund has turned bearish in a hurry and is now pointing toward further downside.—
Oliver Renick,
CNBC,
10 June 2026
-
Sure, there are lots of places, but all of the best ones fill up in a hurry.—
Matt Reigle OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
10 June 2026
Noun
-
Threats have always been a part of United States history, often manifesting in times of political turmoil or cultural tension.—
Rund Abdelfatah,
NPR,
11 June 2026
-
The region's economic disparity is one of the forces that led to turmoil that culminated in attacks by a small number of extremists among the Uyghurs.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
10 June 2026
Noun
-
The school also runs a cooking basics program that covers mise en place, knife skills, soup and stock production, sauce making and a wide range of cooking methods — roasting, grilling, sautéing, pan-frying, stir-frying, braising, poaching and steaming.—
Lauren Schuster,
Miami Herald,
9 June 2026
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That same basics camp walks students through roasting, grilling, sautéing, pan-frying, stir-frying, braising, poaching and steaming.—
Lauren Schuster,
Kansas City Star,
9 June 2026
Noun
-
Some onlookers wandering past asked what all the fuss was about.—
PJ Green,
Kansas City Star,
9 June 2026
-
Cars work in some places and become a headache in others, while Italy’s train network can move travelers between major cities with minimal fuss.—
Hanna Wickes,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
8 June 2026
Noun
-
While these instruments might be heard loudly on the streets, they have been banned at the World Cup this year in Mexico to prevent excessive noise.—
Michael Rios,
CNN Money,
7 June 2026
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From noise-cancelling headphones to cozy travel wraps, here are the seven travel essentials worth splurging on, according to a luxury travel agent.—
Jasmine Gomez,
Travel + Leisure,
6 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Hurly-burly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hurly-burly. Accessed 13 Jun. 2026.
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