Synonyms

out of control

Idioms

Also, out of hand. No longer under management, direction, or regulation; unmanageable or unruly. For example, Housing costs are out of control, or The children were getting out of hand again. The first term uses control in the sense of “restraint,” a usage dating from the late 1500s; the variant uses hand in the sense of “power” or “authority,” and dates from the late 1800s.

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.

Growth valuations aren’t even that out of control, so strong earnings could certainly push the stocks higher.

From Barron's • May 11, 2026

Read my past op-ed: The price Americans pay for medicine has gotten horribly out of control.

From MarketWatch • May 4, 2026

It would be unwise to bet against events spiralling out of control.

From BBC • Apr. 22, 2026

It can feel as if you are spinning out of control in a Tilt-A-Whirl ride at an amusement park.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 15, 2026

A chilling reminder of just how quickly events could get out of control.

From "Fallout: Spies, Superbombs, and the Ultimate Cold War Showdown" by Steve Sheinkin

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023