1
as in insanity
a serious mental disorder that prevents one from living a safe and normal life
nowadays certain forms of madness are quite treatable
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in simplicity
lack of good sense or judgment
to do something so reckless would be sheer madness
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in anger
an intense emotional state of displeasure with someone or something
her incessant insults goaded him to such madness that he would storm around breaking dishes and slamming doors
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of madness
Unlike Hamlet’s noblewoman Ophelia, whose plight in a patriarchal society finds her powerless, spiraling into madness and leads to her tragic end by drowning, Swift’s Ophelia triumphs.
—
Althea Legaspi, Rolling Stone, 5 Oct. 2025
Ophelia is driven to madness after the murder of her father and flaky romantic advances from Hamlet, and before long, takes her own life.
—Jaeden Pinder, Pitchfork, 3 Oct. 2025
Of course, title notwithstanding, this opener is as gleeful as the rest of the record, as Swift sings about being rescued from a descent into Shakespearian madness by her happy-go-lucky baller.
—Chris Willman, Variety, 3 Oct. 2025
Just as Gein claimed his mother's death drove him to madness and pushed him to commit horrific crimes to fulfill his longing to quite literally embody her, Norman's warped devotion to the late Norma is ultimately revealed as the trigger for his descent into psychosis.
—Megan McCluskey, Time, 3 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for madness
Althea Legaspi, Rolling Stone, 5 Oct. 2025
Ophelia is driven to madness after the murder of her father and flaky romantic advances from Hamlet, and before long, takes her own life.
—Jaeden Pinder, Pitchfork, 3 Oct. 2025
Of course, title notwithstanding, this opener is as gleeful as the rest of the record, as Swift sings about being rescued from a descent into Shakespearian madness by her happy-go-lucky baller.
—Chris Willman, Variety, 3 Oct. 2025
Just as Gein claimed his mother's death drove him to madness and pushed him to commit horrific crimes to fulfill his longing to quite literally embody her, Norman's warped devotion to the late Norma is ultimately revealed as the trigger for his descent into psychosis.
—Megan McCluskey, Time, 3 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for madness
Recent Examples of Synonyms for madness
Noun
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Working with Chhaya clients who were facing foreclosure, Mamdani got an intimate look at the little insanities of the city’s housing crisis.—
Eric Lach,
New Yorker,
9 Oct. 2025
-
Exantus was found not guilty of murder by reason of insanity but was sentenced for assault in the 2015 case involving 6-year-old Logan Tipton.—
Leo Bertucci,
Louisville Courier Journal,
9 Oct. 2025
Noun
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The Secret Agent opens in stark simplicity.—
Baz Bamigboye,
Deadline,
10 Oct. 2025
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As for the overall style, Thevenot gravitates toward simplicity, suggesting something in the center of the updo-to-hair-down spectrum.—
Anneke Knot,
Allure,
10 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
For Yankees fans, there will be anger.—
Brendan Kuty,
New York Times,
9 Oct. 2025
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Through sharp wit and deep introspection, Wood reveals the wisdom he’s gathered—from knowing when to hold your tongue to learning how to channel anger into purpose.—
Lynnette Nicholas,
Essence,
9 Oct. 2025
Noun
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According to her death certificate, Joan died from dementia.—
Virginia Chamlee,
PEOPLE,
10 Oct. 2025
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In a cruel irony, the chaos of homelessness that forces people to prioritize survival, combined with health conditions such as physical disabilities, dementia or serious mental illness, often collude to prevent patients from engaging with the very systems that could end their homelessness.—
Sarah Stella,
The Conversation,
9 Oct. 2025
Noun
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The Studio is really more about the big Hollywood system and the machine and the craziness that ensues.—
Nick Romano,
Entertainment Weekly,
10 Oct. 2025
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If anyone remembers the craziness of the MarketWatch IPO, that’s what really got the dot-com movement going and turned a lot of bankers’ heads.—
Jim Cramer,
CNBC,
28 Sep. 2025
Noun
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McBride sets the political context for Swift’s savage indignation by noting that 1727–1729 saw three successive harvest failures in Ireland.—
Matthew Wills,
JSTOR Daily,
30 Sep. 2025
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Passions run as high as style, and candor and fervor blend with humor, to endow anecdotes and reflections with pride and purpose along with mourning and indignation.—
Richard Brody,
New Yorker,
23 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Like a faulty fire hydrant, or a vacuum cleaner whizzing up and down with the uncontrollable hysteria of a feral raccoon, our directive was to suck up as many clicks as possible through every angle imaginable.—
Kieran Press-Reynolds,
Pitchfork,
8 Oct. 2025
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In the business classic Extraordinary Popular Delusions and the Madness of Crowds, Charles Mackay examined the psychology of crowd behavior and mass hysteria throughout history, from the Dutch Tulip Mania of the 1630s to humanity’s historical obsession with transmuting base metals into gold.—
Jeffrey Sonnenfeld,
Fortune,
7 Oct. 2025
Noun
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And in the 1980s, a downtown-NYC-all-the-rage feminist painter exploits her female studio assistants.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
6 Oct. 2025
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Flip-flops have proven to be all the rage lately, from the pool to the street to the runway.—
Jaden Thompson,
Footwear News,
6 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Madness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/madness. Accessed 14 Oct. 2025.
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