insane
Americanadjective
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(not in technical use as a medical diagnosis) not sane; not of sound mind; mentally deranged.
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of, relating to, or characteristic of a person who is mentally deranged.
a wild and insane look on her face.
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Law. considered to be or to have been affected with insanity, and therefore lacking legal responsibility or legal capacity.
The judge deemed him criminally insane on the basis of his delusions and hallucinations.
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temporarily unable to think clearly.
I think I'm going insane from all the noise outside.
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utterly senseless.
an insane plan.
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Slang. excessive or extravagant; extreme.
This much snow in April is just insane!
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Slang. astonishingly great; wonderful.
Without his insane performance, the film would've been a total flop.
adjective
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mentally deranged; crazy; of unsound mind
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( as collective noun; preceded by the )
the insane
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characteristic of a person of unsound mind
an insane stare
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irresponsible; very foolish; stupid
Related Words
See mad.
Other Word Forms
- insanely adverb
- insaneness noun
- pseudoinsane adjective
Etymology
Origin of insane
First recorded in 1550–60; from Latin insānus “unsound (of mind), demented, frenzied”; in- 3, sane
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.
After roughly three years of treatment in 2013, a judge ordered her to be released from custody because doctors said she was no longer insane.
From Los Angeles Times
Soon, there would be Saturdays with one of our college football teams, then Sundays with the NFL then, the baseball playoffs, leading to the insane Game 7 and morphing into the annual Lakers winter drama.
From Los Angeles Times
“If you’re capable enough to have an argument with your parents at a Christmas party ... you are not insane,” Rahmani said.
From Los Angeles Times
Predicting that Musk would make more than any person in human history, in just one year, seemed, well, insane early in 2025.
From Barron's
"That's just such an insane way to finish a tournament," said the South African after he won on extra holes for the second straight week.
From Barron's
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.
