chaotic
Americanadjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of chaotic
Explanation
Something chaotic is really out of control or disorganized. Chaotic starts with a hard "K" sound (kay-AH-tick), but things that are chaotic are usually not OK, they're crazy disordered, like your crammed locker at the end of the school year. Chaotic is an adjective that comes from the noun "chaos," meaning complete and total confusion or lack of order. Your teacher might find it chaotic inside the bus on the way home from a field trip, with so much talking and singing and stored up energy bouncing around. A classic example of something chaotic is the running of the bulls in Spain, an event that lets people run the streets with a bunch of huge, sharp-horned bulls. It's totally chaotic!
Vocabulary lists containing chaotic
"Marigolds"
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"Names/Nombres" by Julia Alvarez
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50 Great Words from The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, by Mark Haddon
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Meanwhile, life with her mum Kay and Eddie was chaotic.
From BBC ● Oct. 30, 2026
Errors in chaotic situations are not unique to Watch Duty.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 30, 2026
England edged towards a World Cup exit after their points chase against Papua New Guinea descended into a chaotic and error-strewn 34-12 victory that will almost certainly prove insufficient in the final reckoning.
From BBC ● Oct. 30, 2026
Major sporting events should not be more chaotic than youth soccer tournaments.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 27, 2026
The audience explodes into chaotic noise all around us.
From "Warcross" by Marie Lu
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Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
