1
as in goofy
lacking in seriousness or maturity
the movie follows the harebrained antics of a pair of stoners who seem incapable of growing up
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in foolish
showing or marked by a lack of good sense or judgment
a harebrained idea to go for a hike in an area where grizzly bear attacks had recently been reported
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of harebrained
The cartoon comedy is everything that its title implies: The movie follows a cop who is half dog and half man, thanks to a harebrained (but lifesaving) surgery that leads a man and his faithful companion to be fused into one.
—
EW.com, 2 Feb. 2025
In Dog Man, after a faithful police dog and his human police officer owner are injured together on the job, a harebrained but life-saving surgery fuses them together and Dog Man is born.
—Anthony D'alessandro, Deadline, 29 Jan. 2025
Reynolds thrived in front of a live studio audience, playing a college-age rascal who was more interested in messing with his friends and pursuing harebrained schemes than deciding on a major.
—Jesse David Fox, Vulture, 2 Aug. 2024
But that scheme is a bit harebrained, because the explosions would also introduce deadly radioactive material into the air.
—Sven Bilén, Discover Magazine, 17 July 2024
See All Example Sentences for harebrained
EW.com, 2 Feb. 2025
In Dog Man, after a faithful police dog and his human police officer owner are injured together on the job, a harebrained but life-saving surgery fuses them together and Dog Man is born.
—Anthony D'alessandro, Deadline, 29 Jan. 2025
Reynolds thrived in front of a live studio audience, playing a college-age rascal who was more interested in messing with his friends and pursuing harebrained schemes than deciding on a major.
—Jesse David Fox, Vulture, 2 Aug. 2024
But that scheme is a bit harebrained, because the explosions would also introduce deadly radioactive material into the air.
—Sven Bilén, Discover Magazine, 17 July 2024
See All Example Sentences for harebrained
Recent Examples of Synonyms for harebrained
Adjective
-
Fred looked, well, a little goofy and the explosion wasn't nearly as impressive.—
Joe Salas
June 07,
New Atlas,
7 June 2025
-
Primus specialize in bass-heavy, off-kilter rock with a goofy sense of humor.—
Ross Raihala,
Twin Cities,
2 June 2025
Adjective
-
Kent can often just look foolish onstage, sitting there idling.—
Nan Z. Da
June 10,
Literary Hub,
10 June 2025
-
To write off the Israeli leader would be foolish, especially with new elections not required until late 2026.—
Yair Rosenberg,
The Atlantic,
22 May 2025
Adjective
-
Alas, during one night siege (silly enough to not scare the little ones, even as the entire village repeatedly goes up in flames), Hiccup aims his weapon at the shape of a Night Fury (no one, we’re told repeatedly, as ever really seen one), shoots, and … what!—
Kate Erbland,
IndieWire,
9 June 2025
-
Still, sometimes Forrest’s demands seemed nitpicky, silly even.—
Brenna Ehrlich,
Rolling Stone,
8 June 2025
Adjective
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This is just stupid how successful this is, but that’s really underselling it.—
Andy Greene,
Rolling Stone,
31 May 2025
-
Camp, stupid, joyful—to both own and access—Labubu has taken over.—
Lara Johnson-Wheeler,
Vogue,
31 May 2025
Adjective
-
The fight against short-term rentals, after all, can be futile.—
Teri Sforza,
Oc Register,
6 June 2025
-
But without Congress actually enacting the DOGE cuts into law, history will show this entire exercise to have been largely futile.—
Josh Hammer,
MSNBC Newsweek,
30 May 2025
Adjective
-
There’s the undercurrent of politics stirring animus between the neighbors, with Canadians angered by President Donald Trump’s tariffs and his absurd aside saying perhaps Canada should be the 51st U.S. state.—
Greg Cote,
Miami Herald,
5 June 2025
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The concept itself is absurd, given the modest park features.—
The Editorial Board,
Oc Register,
4 June 2025
Adjective
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Attendees had the chance to film themselves posing against the canola field backdrop from When Life Gives You Tangerines or jumping high into the air like a giddy Thanos with the aid of a Squid Game trampoline.—
Regina Kim,
Forbes.com,
2 June 2025
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Castillo’s short novel is a giddy character study of an unpleasant young male type.—
Jasmine Vojdani,
Vulture,
2 June 2025
Adjective
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Fast, not scared to use his front bumper, don't care if somebody gets mad about it and on the verge of becoming a star.—
Saajan Jogia,
MSNBC Newsweek,
5 June 2025
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Netflix won’t need a mad genius to figure out that Guillermo del Toro’s Frankenstein needs to be brought to life on the biggest screen possible.—
Tim Lammers,
Forbes.com,
4 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Harebrained.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/harebrained. Accessed 17 Jun. 2025.
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