basket case
noun Slang.
Offensive. a person who has had all four limbs amputated.
a person who is helpless or incapable of functioning normally, especially due to overwhelming stress, anxiety, or the like.
anything that is impaired or incapable of functioning: Right after the war the conquered nation was considered an economic basket case.
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Origin of basket case
First recorded in 1915–20
usage note for basket case
In the sense of “an amputee,” this term is perceived as insulting. It is military slang dating from World War I. Basket cases were soldiers who had lost all of their limbs and could not be safely carried on stretchers, though these types of casualties were probably very rare. At that time, a basket case was a wicker basket used to carry linens or other dry goods.
Words nearby basket case
basisphenoid, basivertebral vein, bask, baskerville, basket, basket case, basket catch, basket cell, basket chair, basket clause, basket dinner
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020
Example sentences from the Web for basket case
So is Phoenix finally ready to drop the basket-case act and play nice in Hollywood?
British Dictionary definitions for basket case
basket case
noun slang
a person who is suffering from extreme nervous strain; nervous wreck
mainly US and Canadian taboo a person who has had both arms and both legs amputated
- someone or something that is incapable of functioning normally
- (as modifier)a basket-case economy
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
Idioms and Phrases with basket case
basket case
A person or thing too impaired to function. For example, The stress of moving twice in one year left her a basket case, or The republics of the former Soviet Union are economic basket cases. Originating in World War I for a soldier who had lost all four limbs in combat and consequently had to be carried in a litter (“basket”), this term was then transferred to an emotionally or mentally unstable person and later to anything that failed to function. [Slang; second half of 1900s]
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.