as in silly
showing or marked by a lack of good sense or judgment
she's always off on some screwball plan
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in eccentric
a person of odd or whimsical habits
a screwball who liked to save lint and bits of string
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of screwball
A.a. Dowd, Chron, 12 May 2023
Each event becomes screwball one-act with different chaos ensembles.
—Darren Franich, EW.com, 16 Feb. 2023
Stuart Miller, Oc Register, 14 Apr. 2025
Zink, who has lived in and around that city for many years, catalogs the ghosts that haunt it with a voice that is cool and fastidious and possessed of a screwball comic sensibility rooted in pain.
—New York Times, 27 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for screwball
Adjective
Here, Johnson applies a screwball procedural framework to a true story of tech-world boom and bust, building his movie on a clash of values and personalities.
—A.a. Dowd, Chron, 12 May 2023
Each event becomes screwball one-act with different chaos ensembles.
—Darren Franich, EW.com, 16 Feb. 2023
Noun
Some of the marketing language and early reviews use words like screwball comedy and rom-com, but this film’s tone is different too, using the characters’ friendships and careers to create a funny but more sweet and poignant film.
—Stuart Miller, Oc Register, 14 Apr. 2025
Zink, who has lived in and around that city for many years, catalogs the ghosts that haunt it with a voice that is cool and fastidious and possessed of a screwball comic sensibility rooted in pain.
—New York Times, 27 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for screwball
Recent Examples of Synonyms for screwball
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
Noun
-
There are dozens upon dozens of memorable eccentrics, delusional antiheroes, blustery authority figures, sad sacks, screw-ups and all-too-lovable schmucks that populate the 12 feature films and handful of shorts directed by Wes Anderson.—
David Fear,
Rolling Stone,
28 May 2025
-
To take her mind off him, Agathe meets an Austen-like family of eccentrics running the retreat and the sometimes pretentious writers attending it.—
Randy Myers,
Mercury News,
22 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
-
The concept itself is absurd, given the modest park features.—
The Editorial Board,
Oc Register,
4 June 2025
Noun
-
What this means is that attackers can apply additional characters in the target field, things like spaces and line breaks for example, so that the user only sees the legitimate-looking path and has no cause for concern that anything is amiss.—
Davey Winder,
Forbes.com,
8 June 2025
-
My character is someone who’s been without his best friend and partner for three years.—
Matt Donnelly,
Variety,
8 June 2025
Adjective
-
The pair will make stupid decisions, and viewers will likely wonder: would a girl like Paula really do that for a mess like Sloane?—
Lisa Kennedy,
Variety,
13 June 2025
-
This one is one person on the street obviously taking the soul of a protester who was stupid enough to go after some police officers.—
Armando Salguero OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
13 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
-
Tauruses will go crazy for something chic, functional, and soft to the touch.—
Meghan Rose,
Glamour,
9 Feb. 2023
-
Before getting into the chaos of episode 5, that episode 4 cliff hanger was crazy.—
Calie Schepp,
EW.com,
6 Feb. 2023
Adjective
-
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
-
Sources tell The Hollywood Reporter that Madison would play twin sisters in a story that sees a mad prince take in the noble class into his castle while a plague devastates the peasantry.—
Borys Kit,
HollywoodReporter,
4 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Screwball.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/screwball. Accessed 19 Jun. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share