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screwball 1 of 2

adjective

Definition of screwballnext
as in silly
showing or marked by a lack of good sense or judgment she's always off on some screwball plan

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

screwball

2 of 2

noun

ˈskrü-ˌbȯl How to pronounce screwball (audio)
as in eccentric
a person of odd or whimsical habits a screwball who liked to save lint and bits of string

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 screwball
Adjective
The alternately suspenseful and silly scene nicely sets up the tone for this new season, which is infused with references to classic Westerns as much as screwball comedies. — David Canfield, HollywoodReporter, 1 June 2026 Of all contemporary Gallic stars, Lellouche and Demoustier already feel slightly out of time, their features recalling both silent-era performers and screwball archetypes. — Ben Croll, IndieWire, 12 May 2026
Noun
This is especially apparent in scenes with multiple characters speaking, recalling 1930s American screwball comedies with a dash of French realism. — Murtada Elfadl, Variety, 19 May 2026 The screwball comedy is one of the great gifts that 1930s Hollywood gave us, but that genre didn’t win too many awards. — Jordan Hoffman, Vanity Fair, 16 Mar. 2026 See All Example Sentences for screwball
Recent Examples of Synonyms for screwball
  1. silly
  2. eccentric
  3. stupid
  4. character
  5. absurd
  6. oddball
  7. foolish
  8. original
Adjective
  • That being said, the Ravens offense made the Colts look silly.
    — Ted Nguyen, New York Times, 15 Sep. 2026
  • Barisone’s proposition was that everything that followed—months of living and working together, silly texts—was done in the shadow of that threat.
    — Ian Parker, New Yorker, 14 Sep. 2026
Definition of silly
Noun
  • The public reckonings with these figures’ legacies—the troubled former child star gone too soon, the beloved icon, the cult favorite, the complicated eccentric—have come in a cascade.
    — Michael Schulman, New Yorker, 5 Sep. 2026
  • Make sure to practice a full range of motion with these and emphasize the eccentric (the way down) part of the movement for maximal time under tension and muscle-building stimulus.
    — Jakob Roze, HEALTH, 19 Aug. 2026
Definition of eccentric
Adjective
  • The humor is like laughing about something that was just so stupid, or something that was so traumatic.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 15 Sep. 2026
  • That’s the problem with all of your arguments and stupid comments.
    — Marissa R. Moss, Rolling Stone, 15 Sep. 2026
Definition of stupid
Noun
  • However, the irregular architecture, surviving wooden beams, and 15th-century chapel lend certain spaces genuine local character.
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 17 Sep. 2026
  • Those scenes play as if the screenwriters gave up on trying to resolve the twisty plot, instead just making their characters tell all, leaving the film’s denouement much less engrossing than its setup.
    — Murtada Elfadl, Variety, 16 Sep. 2026
Definition of character
Adjective
  • The English dialogue for these films was often absurd and barely coherent, written to conform to the movements of the actors’ mouths.
    — Victor Garber, Vulture, 17 Sep. 2026
  • Correa’s contract contains a full no-trade clause, though any thought of the Astros moving him seems absurd.
    — Chandler Rome, New York Times, 15 Sep. 2026
Definition of absurd
Noun
  • This made him, along with Córdoba, his doctoral adviser, an oddball in the area.
    — Konstantin Kakaes, Quanta Magazine, 8 Sep. 2026
  • These sisters were not your average oddballs, especially as Herzog reimagines them.
    — Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 3 Sep. 2026
Definition of oddball
Adjective
  • Cousins made two foolish mistakes, on the interceptions by Trader and Taaffe.
    — Barry Jackson, Miami Herald, 14 Sep. 2026
  • That game is too important, and holding someone back for a hypothetical Game 3 might be foolish regardless.
    — Matt Gelb, New York Times, 8 Sep. 2026
Definition of foolish
Noun
  • The production’s winking tone blunts some of the original’s tear-jerking climax, yet its intact happy ending offers a surprisingly comforting vision of survival in an age of constant crises.
    — Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 5 Sep. 2026
  • The new camera is designed to look like it was pulled directly from the 2000s (rather than the ’80s look of the original), with metallic silver and bubblegum pink options among the blind box shells.
    — Jamie Spain, Condé Nast Traveler, 5 Sep. 2026
Definition of original

Browse Nearby Words

screw around
screwball
screwballs
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Cite this Entry

“Screwball.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/screwball. Accessed 17 Sep. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on screwball

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about screwball

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