wacky
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Adjectives
Etymology
Origin of wacky
First recorded in 1935–40; apparently whack (noun, as in out of whack ) + -y 1
Explanation
Something that's wacky is weird or nutty or silly. Your goofy uncle who wears a funny hat and does magic tricks at the dinner table is wacky. Use the adjective wacky when you're talking about someone with a ridiculous sense of humor. Clowns are, by definition, wacky, for example. Most people have at least one wacky relative, and some are lucky enough to have entire wacky families. Wacky comes from the nineteenth century British slang term whacky, which arose from whack, specifically the idea of getting whacked on the head so hard that it turns you 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.
Alan Greenspan’s legacy is alive and well, JPMorgan’s line of succession becomes foggier, and SoftBank releases another wacky PowerPoint.
From Slate • Jun. 27, 2026
Reduced supply can lead to some wacky outcomes in the stock market.
From Barron's • Jun. 11, 2026
Fancy-fy your frozen pizzas with all your favorite condiments, regardless of how wacky the combo may be.
From Salon • Jun. 6, 2026
Watch the whole thing for other wacky ideas and plenty of laughs.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 29, 2026
As for why the three Keeley brothers were running around their neighborhood on a Sunday afternoon like crazed lunatics, grabbing all sorts of wacky stuff, well, it was their mother’s fault.
From "Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library" by Chris Grabenstein
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.
