half-mad
Britishadjective
-
not entirely sane
-
extremely upset or distracted
half-mad with fear
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.
Lawrence while Aunt Ada Doom injects a Gothic touch with her half-mad stare and ravings about “something nasty in the woodshed.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 12, 2025
Saul, the first king of Israel, ended his reign in defeat, half-mad and disgraced, replaced by the upstart David.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 27, 2023
Twenty-two years in power would do that to anyone, and what we’re witnessing is a classic situation of a half-mad czar.
From New York Times ● Aug. 25, 2021
“Any little girl who’s practicing her speech on the telly: you never know!” an overwhelmed Olivia Colman said after winning best leading actress for her portrayal of a heartbroken, half-mad Queen Anne in “The Favourite.”
From Washington Post ● Feb. 25, 2019
Kingshaw shrugged, and began to go along through the mud beside the hedge again, half-mad with pride and pleasure.
From "I'm the King of the Castle" by Susan Hill
Definitions 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.
