madman
Americannoun
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of madman
First recorded in 1300–50, madman is from Middle English madd man. See mad, man
Explanation
Madman is an old fashioned, derogatory term for a severely mentally ill person. These days, calling someone with a serious psychiatric illness a madman would be offensive. You're most likely to hear dangerous criminals described as madmen, although it's also common to use this word for someone who acts recklessly: "Look how fast that madman is driving!" Another way to use madman is to emphasize the intensity of something: "She worked on that paper like a madman, writing the entire thing in just a few hours."
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.
To establish the right note of terror on a fog-strewn set by Arnulfo Maldonado that resembles the private chamber of a writer or madman, Page begins with Lady Macbeth’s chilling incantation.
From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 17, 2026
“I didn’t know which madman it was going to be.”
From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 4, 2025
But heavy metal’s favorite madman leaves us with his reminder that “You Can’t Kill Rock and Roll.”
From Slate • Jul. 25, 2025
It's only the maniacal laughter in the fading bars that suggests this outlook is the purview of a madman.
From BBC • Jul. 23, 2025
There is nothing here but arrogance and pride, and the empty courage of a madman.
From "A Clash of Kings" by George R.R. Martin
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.
