harum-scarum

[ hair-uhm-skair-uhm, har-uhm-skar-uhm ]
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adjective
  1. reckless; rash; irresponsible: He had a harum-scarum youth.

  2. disorganized; uncontrolled.

adverb
  1. recklessly; wildly: He ran harum-scarum all over the place.

noun
  1. a reckless person.

  2. reckless or unpredictable behavior or action.

Origin of harum-scarum

1
1665–75; earlier harum-starum rhyming compound based on obsolete hare to harass + stare

Other words for harum-scarum

Other words from harum-scarum

  • har·um-scar·um·ness, noun

Words Nearby harum-scarum

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use harum-scarum in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for harum-scarum

harum-scarum

/ (ˈhɛərəmˈskɛərəm) /


adjective, adverb
  1. in a reckless way or of a reckless nature

noun
  1. a person who is impetuous or rash

Origin of harum-scarum

1
C17: perhaps from hare (in obsolete sense: harass) + scare, variant of stare 1; compare helter-skelter

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012