as in insanity
lack of good sense or judgment
what zaniness possessed you to take a mental health day when you knew that the head honcho would be visiting?
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Recent Examples of zaniness
The ensemble comedy garnered critical praise for its steady stream of zaniness and quickly gained a reputation for deftly skewering suburban life while still maintaining a general sweetness of tone.
—
Will Harris, Vulture, 2 Jan. 2026
Animated by an irreverent zaniness, Egger’s poetry fuses elements drawn from contemporary idiom and from lyric tradition to render a surreal world that interrogates existential questions about desire and grief.
—The New Yorker, New Yorker, 24 Nov. 2025
Crowds jumped, chanted and leaned into the sense of communal rebellion, all while celebrating the band's zaniness.
—Audrey Gibbs, Nashville Tennessean, 20 Oct. 2025
The ball sailed over the head of Spencer Torkelson, Martínez and Steven Kwan advanced a base and set in motion a flurry of zaniness that flipped the script for the series opener.
—Zack Meisel, New York Times, 24 Sep. 2025
Annually, Wheeler has to demonstrate his manic-zaniness by jumping out the window of a local business.
—Literary Hub, 5 Aug. 2025
Will Harris, Vulture, 2 Jan. 2026
Animated by an irreverent zaniness, Egger’s poetry fuses elements drawn from contemporary idiom and from lyric tradition to render a surreal world that interrogates existential questions about desire and grief.
—The New Yorker, New Yorker, 24 Nov. 2025
Crowds jumped, chanted and leaned into the sense of communal rebellion, all while celebrating the band's zaniness.
—Audrey Gibbs, Nashville Tennessean, 20 Oct. 2025
The ball sailed over the head of Spencer Torkelson, Martínez and Steven Kwan advanced a base and set in motion a flurry of zaniness that flipped the script for the series opener.
—Zack Meisel, New York Times, 24 Sep. 2025
Annually, Wheeler has to demonstrate his manic-zaniness by jumping out the window of a local business.
—Literary Hub, 5 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for zaniness
Noun
-
What’s that old saying about the definition of insanity.—
Editorial,
Boston Herald,
25 Jan. 2026
-
In that case, Bojeh was found not guilty by reason of insanity and later released under conditional supervision.—
Sarah Rumpf-Whitten,
FOXNews.com,
23 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
Set into motion by an innocuous wish, the James family is forced to explore their generational differences, intra-marital conflicts, raging hormones, and professional anxieties, in a complicated web of body-swapping madness.—
Nellie Andreeva,
Deadline,
27 Jan. 2026
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The documentary focuses on the inhabitants of Antarctica, and captures an apparent moment of madness within a colony of Adélie penguins, who endure scathingly harsh conditions in the icy wasteland.—
Dani Di Placido,
Forbes.com,
26 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
The third, set in prehistoric times, is dazzling in its simplicity and dramatic rigor, and could’ve easily done without the others.—
Siddhant Adlakha,
Variety,
27 Jan. 2026
-
The low-to-the-ground shoe was overall a showcase of streamlined simplicity with its lack of embellishment and glove-like fit.—
Jaden Thompson,
Footwear News,
26 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
But the comedians also used those laughs to reveal the fundamental absurdity of violence and conflict.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
7 Jan. 2026
-
Rather than focusing solely on superpowers, the series leans into the absurdities and insecurities of the entertainment industry, pulling back the curtain on fame, failure, and second chances.—
Okla Jones,
Essence,
5 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
Of course, no Kojima title would be complete with a little bit of craziness, but even the more far-out aspects of the game make more sense and are a thrilling part of the journey.—
Gieson Cacho,
Mercury News,
29 Dec. 2025
-
Eric had to absorb a lot of her craziness and unspent love.—
Benjamin Markovits,
The Atlantic,
21 Dec. 2025
Noun
-
And somehow, all that wackiness has coalesced into a superb and consistently funny TV show, which made USA TODAY's list of the 10 best TV shows of 2025.—
Kelly Lawler,
USA Today,
22 Jan. 2026
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Advertisement Brooks has imbued his latest with a hefty dose of wackiness.—
Esther Zuckerman,
Time,
12 Dec. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Zaniness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/zaniness. Accessed 1 Feb. 2026.
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