as in absurd
showing or marked by a lack of good sense or judgment
she's always off on some screwball plan
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in eccentric
a person of odd or whimsical habits
a screwball who liked to save lint and bits of string
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of screwball
Brian Truitt, USA Today, 19 Sep. 2025
Each performance arrives with a sense of reinvention — not unlike Hepburn, whose leap from screwball comedies in the 1930s to searing dramas in the 1960s charted an artistic evolution rarely equaled in Hollywood.
—Clayton Davis, Variety, 30 Aug. 2025
Todd Harmonson, Oc Register, 4 Aug. 2025
The delivery sequences are almost Sean Baker-esque in their depictions of the ways that poverty can turn the simplest of errands into a screwball comedy when everything seems to go wrong for you at every minute of the day.
—Christian Zilko, IndieWire, 30 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for screwball
Adjective
Just think of the gridiron characters who've hit the big screen over the years, giving us awesome cinematic moments in everything from screwball comedies to rousing biopics.
—Brian Truitt, USA Today, 19 Sep. 2025
Each performance arrives with a sense of reinvention — not unlike Hepburn, whose leap from screwball comedies in the 1930s to searing dramas in the 1960s charted an artistic evolution rarely equaled in Hollywood.
—Clayton Davis, Variety, 30 Aug. 2025
Noun
The fortunate among us, however, graduated from shots to sips and learned that agave plants in the hands of a master tequilero or mezcalero lead to Mexican treasures as unassailable as Fernando Valenzuela’s screwball.
—Todd Harmonson, Oc Register, 4 Aug. 2025
The delivery sequences are almost Sean Baker-esque in their depictions of the ways that poverty can turn the simplest of errands into a screwball comedy when everything seems to go wrong for you at every minute of the day.
—Christian Zilko, IndieWire, 30 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for screwball
Recent Examples of Synonyms for screwball
Adjective
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The accusation felt absurd, like calling a chihuahua a wolf.—
Miami Herald,
Miami Herald,
30 Oct. 2025
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In the film, which Woo wrote and directed, Stevie (Jolie Hoang-Rappaport) and her little brother Elliot (Elias Janssen) journey into the wildly absurd landscape of their own dreams to ask the Sandman to grant them the perfect family.—
Matt Grobar,
Deadline,
29 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Appealing to consumers searching for a piece of history, the store has gained a following of visitors hunting for unique souvenirs, designers on inspiration trips and local eccentrics.—
Angela Velasquez,
Sourcing Journal,
24 Oct. 2025
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For Mimi Pond, the desire to do a book about the Mitford sisters – six larger-than-life British eccentrics (and one brother) who created a stir in both British and American culture – was obvious.—
Erik Pedersen,
Oc Register,
5 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Go through a corn maze, sip on apple cider, and take silly pictures with the cardboard cutouts.—
Kylie Petty,
Better Homes & Gardens,
25 Oct. 2025
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This separation keeps parents' Discover Weekly and Wrapped playlists clean from unexpected surprises like a sudden obsession with gaming soundtracks or silly meme songs.—
Kurt Knutsson,
FOXNews.com,
24 Oct. 2025
Noun
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David Arquette will somehow reprise his role as Dewey Riley, despite the fact that the character was stabbed to death a couple movies ago.—
Alejandra Gularte,
Vulture,
31 Oct. 2025
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The actor dressed up as the character Tingle from The Legend of Zelda — a 35-year-old man obsessed with forest fairies.—
Stephanie Sengwe,
PEOPLE,
31 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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And that’s a stupid, dumb, mindless question.—
Lisa Gutierrez,
Kansas City Star,
25 Oct. 2025
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Dessert Week is the stupidest week, at least conceptually.—
Brian Moylan,
Vulture,
24 Oct. 2025
Noun
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The shows share a preoccupation with the heroic potential of oddballs and burnouts, one that has kept Horses galloping for five seasons (and two more are in the works).—
Judy Berman,
Time,
29 Oct. 2025
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While tonally jumbled and at times violently jarring, the movie delivers strange vibes and extremely strong performances from Jesse Plemons at his oddball finest and Emma Stone, who may or may not be from our planet.—
Brian Truitt,
USA Today,
29 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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That’s what made the Gators’ decision to retain Napier especially foolish.—
Blake Toppmeyer,
USA TODAY,
30 Oct. 2025
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This of course was foolish in light of the fact that trade deals are incredibly complicated and take a long time to finalize.—
Matt Fleming,
Oc Register,
26 Oct. 2025
Noun
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The 2022 Sequel Texas Chainsaw Massacre Set in the modern day, this 2022 Netflix movie is (another) direct sequel to the original, ignoring every film that comes between.—
Keith Langston,
PEOPLE,
25 Oct. 2025
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But sometimes its just great to come back to the original.—
Jeremy Repanich,
Robb Report,
25 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Screwball.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/screwball. Accessed 3 Nov. 2025.
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