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
Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 9 Aug. 2025
The hallmarks of a Wes Anderson film are instantly recognizable: a retro-leaning aesthetic, dialogue that blends screwball wit with a deep pathos, and an immaculate set design scored by soft rock deep cuts.
—Brett Braley, Robb Report, 30 July 2025
Todd Harmonson, Oc Register, 4 Aug. 2025
Purple and fluoro-flecked Fair Isle clothed Anna Sui’s 1930s screwball comedy heroines.
—Anna Cafolla, Vogue, 1 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for screwball
Adjective
Amazon keeps releasing screwball comedies like Deep Cover and Heads Of State.
—Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 9 Aug. 2025
The hallmarks of a Wes Anderson film are instantly recognizable: a retro-leaning aesthetic, dialogue that blends screwball wit with a deep pathos, and an immaculate set design scored by soft rock deep cuts.
—Brett Braley, Robb Report, 30 July 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
Purple and fluoro-flecked Fair Isle clothed Anna Sui’s 1930s screwball comedy heroines.
—Anna Cafolla, Vogue, 1 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for screwball
Recent Examples of Synonyms for screwball
Adjective
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This aspect will always cast her apart, even today, in the sense that a woman’s naked body is still perceived by audiences as something that stands out for some absurd reason, unfortunately.—
Nick Vivarelli,
Variety,
2 Oct. 2025
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Their vote to shut down the government is absurd.—
Caroline Neal,
Louisville Courier Journal,
1 Oct. 2025
Noun
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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
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For decades, sovereign citizens largely flew under the radar in Australia as relatively harmless eccentrics with a special interest in conspiracy theories.—
Hilary Whiteman,
CNN Money,
29 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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Count Dracula remains a fixture in the horror genre, having been featured in movies that range from scary and sexy to silly and satirical.—
Randall Colburn,
Entertainment Weekly,
6 Oct. 2025
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Anderson’s synthesis of all of these themes, motifs, and silly gags into One Battle After Another, which saw Anderson’s biggest movie opening ever last month, shows how Pynchon’s ideas have not only aged well but are more visible and relevant.—
Kevin Dolak,
HollywoodReporter,
6 Oct. 2025
Noun
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In the movie, there is a montage with a voiceover that shows a classroom interaction between Lohan's character and her crush, Aaron Samuels, played by Jonathan Bennett.—
Taylor Ardrey,
USA Today,
3 Oct. 2025
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The wardrobe and general aesthetic of the character were also already in his mind prior to casting.—
Nick Romano,
Entertainment Weekly,
2 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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The name-calling and the stupid AI and the imagery has got to stop.—
Joey Nolfi,
Entertainment Weekly,
30 Sep. 2025
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These kids are being stupid and absurd and reckless and not thinking about anything other than what’s directly in front of their faces.—
Will Leitch,
New York Times,
30 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Lene Lovich, another brilliant oddball, is a perfect opener for the tour.—
Joe Lynch,
Billboard,
25 Sep. 2025
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After years of being haunted by his past, Holliday hatches a plan to redeem his failing career by walking on to another football team disguised as an oddball named Chad Powers.—
Leia Mendoza,
Variety,
25 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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This place belongs to the Carver, a deranged butcher who hunts anything foolish enough to enter.—
Meredith G. White,
AZCentral.com,
25 Sep. 2025
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France had been humiliated in 1871 by Prussia in a foolish war of its own making, and Dreyfus, accused of passing military secrets to the Germans, was a convenient scapegoat in a time of national malaise.—
Ian Buruma,
New Yorker,
22 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Even some of the originals on the album stem from ‘90s country greats.—
Jessica Nicholson,
Billboard,
3 Oct. 2025
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Daylilies hybridize easily and letting the seeds fall and germinate may result in new plants that aren’t true to the original.—
Karen Brewer Grossman,
Southern Living,
3 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Screwball.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/screwball. Accessed 10 Oct. 2025.
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