mad as a hatter

Idioms  

1. Also, mad as a March hare. Crazy, demented, as in She is throwing out all his clothes; she's mad as a hatter. This expression, dating from the early 1800s, alludes to exposure to the chemicals formerly used in making felt hats, which caused tremors and other nervous symptoms. The variant, dating from the 14th century, alludes to the crazy behavior of hares during rutting season, mistakenly thought to be only in March.

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Example Sentences

“How adorable you three are! But alas, I have no actual bones to give you. When I say your paintings are dry as a bone, it is merely a figure of speech. Like mad as a hatter.”

From Literature

It doesn’t take long for Onion to realize that Brown, for all his noble ambitions of emancipation, is as mad as a hatter.

From Los Angeles Times

Simply mad as a hatter how brief the wait was for this glow-in-the-dark classic.

From Los Angeles Times

During various episodes in his life, Lowell was as mad as a hatter, but in poems like these he went crazy for a purpose.

From The Guardian

“Sure. Whatever. But the bottom line is he’s mad as a hatter. Of course, he’s also brilliant, so we work around it. It’s harder for Marlena than the rest of us, of course. Which is why we must support her.”

From Literature

Related Words

• insane
• kooky
• mad
• nuts
• nutty
• silly
• wacky