as in reckless
foolishly adventurous or bold
a madcap scheme to go over Niagara Falls in a barrel
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Recent Examples of madcap
David Ehrlich, IndieWire, 23 Dec. 2025
And SpongeBob, determined to not be just a bubble blowing baby boy, is set off on his own odyssey that takes him and his jolly starfish sidekick Patrick (Bill Fagerbakke) on a madcap adventure to the underworld with the ghost of The Flying Dutchman ( Mark Hamill ) and his lackey Barb (Regina Hall).
—Lindsey Bahr, Boston Herald, 20 Dec. 2025
Kieran Press-Reynolds, Pitchfork, 17 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for madcap
Adjective
In lieu of a clear target or any meaningful point of view, Gormican fatally trains his attention on the madcap whimsy of making an independent movie with your friends — on the restorative joy of creating something for the love of the game and spending time with your favorite people.
—David Ehrlich, IndieWire, 23 Dec. 2025
And SpongeBob, determined to not be just a bubble blowing baby boy, is set off on his own odyssey that takes him and his jolly starfish sidekick Patrick (Bill Fagerbakke) on a madcap adventure to the underworld with the ghost of The Flying Dutchman ( Mark Hamill ) and his lackey Barb (Regina Hall).
—Lindsey Bahr, Boston Herald, 20 Dec. 2025
Noun
After the Great Splintering that seemed to occur after the pandemic, digicore artists are dropping posse cuts and random madcap loosies with each other again.
—Kieran Press-Reynolds, Pitchfork, 17 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for madcap
Recent Examples of Synonyms for madcap
Adjective
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Later that month, a reckless driver trying to flee police hit and killed a 28-year-old man.—
Francesca Pica,
jsonline.com,
26 Jan. 2026
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The Oceanside City Council recently revised their e-bike ordinance to allow law enforcement to confiscate e-bikes from reckless riders.—
Hannah Elsmore,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
26 Jan. 2026
Noun
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His characters make cavalier deals with the proverbial devil, even as the costs become harder to ignore.—
Virgie Tovar,
Forbes.com,
23 Jan. 2026
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There are sounds and shadows in the forest; the Devil, or devils, may be walking the earth.—
Joshua Rothman,
New Yorker,
23 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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The daredevil sequence sees Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) hijack a biplane to chase down the villainous Gabriel (Esai Morales), who's in a biplane of his own.—
Wesley Stenzel,
Entertainment Weekly,
2 Dec. 2025
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Sladek has traveled around the world doing daredevil acts.—
Kirk Kenney,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
28 Nov. 2025
Noun
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Each singer is known for powerful vocal performances, and their voices complement one another with a graceful concord, highlighting the song’s message of a cowboy’s straightforward, restorative and effective prayers.—
Jessica Nicholson,
Billboard,
12 Jan. 2026
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The Smithsonian Museum estimates that one in four cowboys was Black, working alongside Hispanic vaqueros and Native Americans to help settle the West.—
Bo Evans,
CBS News,
12 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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That single, raw courageous act for Fritzie to lie about her age spared her life in the moment.—
Bernard Cherkasov,
Chicago Tribune,
27 Jan. 2026
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May 21 – June 20 A courageous vision can lead you through complex issues.—
Tarot.com,
Sun Sentinel,
23 Jan. 2026
Noun
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And even then running back Rico Dowdle was a madman, and kicker Ryan Fitzgerald earned Special Teams Player of the Week honors.—
Alex Zietlow,
Charlotte Observer,
11 Nov. 2025
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After all, all 12 signs have a shadow sign, so what better way to call them out than with a slasher, a demon or a dream-stalking madman?—
Valerie Mesa,
PEOPLE,
30 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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The couple also chose an adventurous activity for their honeymoon in 1996.—
Ariana Quihuiz,
PEOPLE,
12 Jan. 2026
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Desserts, too, are both adventurous and delicious.—
Helen Rosner,
New Yorker,
11 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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Those specifics aside, more stunningly, researchers discovered that these brave, early explorers of new worlds demonstrated a different way of moving than had been previously understood.—
Maria Mocerino,
Interesting Engineering,
11 Jan. 2026
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If Tulsa, Oklahoma, can create this support system from scratch and help thousands of strangers succeed in a new town, any organization can adapt to support their employees in our brave, new remote world.—
Justin Harlan,
Fortune,
11 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Madcap.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/madcap. Accessed 1 Feb. 2026.
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