maddening
Americanadjective
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driving to madness or frenzy.
a maddening thirst.
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infuriating or exasperating.
his maddening indifference to my pleas.
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raging; furious.
a maddening wind.
adjective
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serving to send mad
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extremely annoying; exasperating
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of maddening
Explanation
Maddening things are extremely irritating: they make you mad. Some drivers have the maddening habit of following other cars too closely on the highway. If something annoys you a lot, it's maddening. You might try to ignore the maddening tune your sister keeps whistling, or decide to leave a movie half way through because of the maddening acting style of its leading man. The adjective maddening comes from the less-common verb madden, "annoy someone," or "drive someone insane." Both words are rooted in the Old English gemædde, "out of one's mind."
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.
There is some reason behind the maddening format, introduced after France – who were supposed to host a 16-team men's World Cup last summer – pulled out because of money troubles.
From BBC ● Oct. 24, 2026
For the auto industry, this AM radio obsession is maddening.
From Slate ● Oct. 20, 2026
It had been a maddening couple of months as Ohtani battled injuries, slid down the batting order and failed to produce when the Dodgers needed him most — in the postseason.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 16, 2026
The rules did not disappear; they became even more dependent on that maddening instruction: read the room.
From Salon ● Sep. 23, 2026
Thanks to her maddening pep, though, it may backfire.
From "What the Night Sings" by Vesper Stamper
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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.
