as in commotion
a state of noisy, confused activity
lost sight of his children in all the hurly-burly of the fair
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of hurly-burly
But mostly for my parents, who had worked so hard for so many years to create a refuge from the hurly-burly of the outside world.
—
James Rainey, Los Angeles Times, 12 Jan. 2025
In the hurly-burly of a modern economy, people are constantly being hurt by economic changes beyond their control.
—Alan S. Blinder, Foreign Affairs, 11 Dec. 2018
But mostly for my parents, who had worked so hard for so many years to create a refuge from the hurly-burly of the outside world.
—James Rainey, Los Angeles Times, 12 Jan. 2025
Mustard admires the fact that, rather than engage in the hurly-burly of social media, Lamar will disappear from public view for long stretches of time.
—Tribune News Service, Boston Herald, 22 Aug. 2024
Trump Has Promised to Do in a Second Term
Compounding all of this household hurly-burly is the fact that Suada has stage 4 pancreatic cancer.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 3 Apr. 2024
The image’s low contrast and lack of sharpness suggest that it was snapped from the hurly-burly of the piazza.
—Paul Elie, The New Yorker, 14 Nov. 2023
By then, his approach to artists had softened, perhaps from age, or from the experience of being in the creative hurly-burly himself.
—Helen Shaw, The New Yorker, 1 Nov. 2023
He is considered a must-follow in the hurly-burly community known as Crypto Twitter for his informed takes on legal and regulatory news.
—Jeff John Roberts, Fortune Crypto, 3 Oct. 2023
James Rainey, Los Angeles Times, 12 Jan. 2025
In the hurly-burly of a modern economy, people are constantly being hurt by economic changes beyond their control.
—Alan S. Blinder, Foreign Affairs, 11 Dec. 2018
But mostly for my parents, who had worked so hard for so many years to create a refuge from the hurly-burly of the outside world.
—James Rainey, Los Angeles Times, 12 Jan. 2025
Mustard admires the fact that, rather than engage in the hurly-burly of social media, Lamar will disappear from public view for long stretches of time.
—Tribune News Service, Boston Herald, 22 Aug. 2024
Trump Has Promised to Do in a Second Term
Compounding all of this household hurly-burly is the fact that Suada has stage 4 pancreatic cancer.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 3 Apr. 2024
The image’s low contrast and lack of sharpness suggest that it was snapped from the hurly-burly of the piazza.
—Paul Elie, The New Yorker, 14 Nov. 2023
By then, his approach to artists had softened, perhaps from age, or from the experience of being in the creative hurly-burly himself.
—Helen Shaw, The New Yorker, 1 Nov. 2023
He is considered a must-follow in the hurly-burly community known as Crypto Twitter for his informed takes on legal and regulatory news.
—Jeff John Roberts, Fortune Crypto, 3 Oct. 2023
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hurly-burly
Noun
-
After 'tremendous commotion,' Cassie screamed, 'Isn't anybody seeing this?' Some of the most compelling testimony has come from former Combs former personal assistant, George Kaplan.—
Josh Meyer,
USA Today,
29 May 2025
-
Video footage from that day shows commotion and ICE agents entangled with members of Congress and their staff.—
Ashleigh Fields,
The Hill,
13 May 2025
Noun
-
The northeastern beach tiger beetle’s inability to endure human disturbance has wiped it out everywhere except three remote corners of the U.S., one of which is Hughlett Point.—
Simon Davidson,
Travel + Leisure,
25 May 2025
-
This tactic is best for certain veggies and flowers like tomatoes and marigolds that can handle some root disturbance; other plants have more sensitive roots that won't tolerate transplanting well, such as root vegetables.—
Viveka Neveln,
Better Homes & Gardens,
25 May 2025
Noun
-
Pod coffee was an easier way to make a single cup in a hurry.—
Louryn Strampe,
Wired News,
24 May 2025
-
Rafael Nadal was a tennis warrior, to be sure: a competitive beast dripping with sweat and relentless in-the-moment ambition who could give the opposition a faraway gaze in a hurry.—
Christopher Clarey,
Air Mail,
24 May 2025
Noun
-
The turmoil at key U.S. agencies threatens everything from forecast quality to storm recovery.—
Alan Ohnsman,
Forbes.com,
2 June 2025
-
Meanwhile, the federal government agencies responsible for forecasting and disaster relief are in turmoil.—
Andrew Torgan,
CNN Money,
1 June 2025
Noun
-
Spacey’s visit to Cannes, which Variety understands could even include a red carpet appearance at the Palais, is likely to cause something of a stir.—
Alex Ritman,
Variety,
18 May 2025
-
His comments caused such a stir that team owner John Henry flew to meet with Devers in Kansas City, where the team was playing last week.—
Jen McCaffrey,
New York Times,
17 May 2025
Noun
-
The clip shows the dog making a bee line for his favorite worker and receiving plenty of fuss.—
Alyce Collins,
MSNBC Newsweek,
26 May 2025
-
At the same time, there is an unshakable sense that successive British Foreign Secretaries and Prime Ministers have been scared to kick up a fuss.—
Sam Knight,
New Yorker,
23 May 2025
Noun
-
Your brain is trained to be 17 different people in a week by the hustle and bustle of it.—
Jason P. Frank,
Vulture,
22 May 2025
-
Passengers who take a shuttle to meet their drivers rarely see the bustle of the pen.—
Eli Tan,
New York Times,
14 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Hurly-burly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hurly-burly. Accessed 6 Jun. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share