crazy
- 01 A2 Elementary
adj.very strange, unusual, or foolish.
adj.not sensible or logical; extremely foolish or strange.
Simple“It was a crazy idea to drive through the storm at night.”
In context“The plan to launch the product without any prior testing seemed crazy to the rest of the board members.”
Synonyms - 02 A2 Elementary
adj.liking something or someone very much.
adj.extremely enthusiastic or fond of a particular person, activity, or object.
Simple“My brother is crazy about football and never misses a game.”
In context“She has been crazy about jazz since she was a teenager, spending most of her weekends at local clubs.”
SynonymsAntonyms - 03 B1 Intermediate
adj.having a mind that does not work in a normal way.
adj.suffering from a mental illness or being of unsound mind.
Simple“The old stories say a crazy man used to live in that house.”
In context“The defendant's lawyers argued that he was crazy at the time of the incident to avoid a prison sentence.”
UsageOften considered offensive when used to describe people with clinical mental health conditions.
Teacher's tipIn modern English, using this word to describe mental illness is often seen as insensitive; advise students to use 'mentally ill' in serious contexts.
- 04 B1 Intermediate
adj.very busy, fast, or full of activity.
adj.characterised by chaotic activity or extreme haste.
Simple“Work has been crazy lately with the new project starting.”
In context“The atmosphere in the newsroom became crazy as the election results started pouring in from the coastal districts.”
- 05 C1 Advanced
adv.very or extremely.
adv.used as an intensifier to mean 'to a great degree'.
Simple“That new video game is crazy expensive.”
In context“The traffic on the bridge was crazy slow this morning due to the construction work.”
Synonyms - 06 C1 Advanced
n.a person who behaves in a very strange or wild way.
n.a person who is perceived as insane or highly eccentric.
Simple“Don't listen to him; he's just a crazy who shouts at cars.”
In context“The local residents viewed the inventor as a bit of a crazy, despite his obvious technical brilliance.”
Synonymseccentriccrackpot
From craze (“to crush”) + -y, akin to being "crazed up". Compare cracked up (“suffered a mental breakdown; be insane”), crackpot. Compare typologically Russian чо́кнутый (čóknutyj).
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.