wacko
Americannoun
plural
wackosadjective
adjective
noun
Etymology
Origin of wacko
Explanation
Describing someone as a wacko is a derogatory way to say they're quirky or eccentric. It may be tempting to call the neighbor who walks his pet peacock on a leash a wacko, but it wouldn't be very nice. You'll often hear someone use the word wacko as a way of dismissing people whose opinions or lifestyle they don't understand or agree with. If your cranky uncle complains about the wackos in town, then he's probably talking about a group of people he doesn't like very well. This informal noun first appeared around 1938, from wacky.
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.
Do you look back at the risks you took, with unusual buildings designed by foreign architects with no experience in China, as wacko now?
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 10, 2026
In April, he was expelled from the House of Commons for calling the prime minister a "wacko".
From BBC • Jan. 8, 2025
People think I’m a little wacko, but I believe plants are like people.
From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 8, 2023
Now, however, its inventors are back, and not with just another wacko, attention-getting stunt.
From New York Times • Mar. 10, 2022
“But wacko or not, he’s awfully careful about keeping his secrets—which is why this has been so extremely, marvelously, wonderfully satisfying!”
From "The Mysterious Benedict Society" by Trenton Lee Stewart
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.
