as in silly
showing or marked by a lack of good sense or judgment
she's always off on some screwball plan
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in eccentric
a person of odd or whimsical habits
a screwball who liked to save lint and bits of string
Synonyms & Similar Words
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 screwball
Darren Franich, EW.com, 16 Feb. 2023
Little wonder the screwball comedy is practically a lost genre.
—Stephanie Zacharek, Time, 21 May 2020
Esther Zuckerman, Rolling Stone, 27 Dec. 2024
Premiering March 20, the Netflix screwball whodunnit — also executive produced by Rhimes — centers on a fictional murder in the White House.
—Jessica Wang, EW.com, 17 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for screwball 
Adjective
Each event becomes screwball one-act with different chaos ensembles.
—Darren Franich, EW.com, 16 Feb. 2023
Little wonder the screwball comedy is practically a lost genre.
—Stephanie Zacharek, Time, 21 May 2020
Noun
The zany magic of the screwballs of the 1930s and 1940s eventually faded, and the 1950s brought more wistful fare, like Roman Holiday.
—Esther Zuckerman, Rolling Stone, 27 Dec. 2024
Premiering March 20, the Netflix screwball whodunnit — also executive produced by Rhimes — centers on a fictional murder in the White House.
—Jessica Wang, EW.com, 17 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for screwball
Recent Examples of Synonyms for screwball
Adjective
-
Today, Sophia Smith, a Colorado kid whose commute from Windsor and dedication to soccer makes my story look silly, is making more than $500,000 a year in her new contract with the Portland Thorns, and reports say her outside contracts and sponsorships are worth another $1.2 million.—
Megan Schrader,
The Denver Post,
9 Feb. 2025
-
The way bacon is packaged in this country is silly.—
Alana Al-Hatlani,
Southern Living,
8 Feb. 2025
Noun
-
My dedication, to help the waifs and strays and eccentrics of the music world together, continues to this day.—
Andy Greene,
Rolling Stone,
11 Oct. 2024
-
Robert Redford delivers folksy wisdom as a local eccentric who once had his own dragon encounter, and even Karl Urban’s greedy logger is more of a nuisance than an outright villain.—
Josh Bell,
Vulture,
20 Dec. 2024
Adjective
-
This gorgeous film’s premise is a simple, humanist, and not particularly dramatic one, of the type that the Italian neorealists treasured, but it’s been given an absurd, comic-romantic spin.—
Bilge Ebiri,
Vulture,
7 Feb. 2025
-
These absurd names and acronyms speak to both the cult-y side of the Eagans and to the ways that corporations keep trying to reinvent things, words included, that worked just fine as is.—
Alan Sepinwall,
Rolling Stone,
7 Feb. 2025
Noun
-
McConnell impressed first-team staff during Liverpool’s 2023 pre-season tour of Singapore with his character, attitude in training and ability to listen and absorb information.—
Andy Jones,
The Athletic,
8 Feb. 2025
-
In the series one of the reporters, Justin (Mark Coles Smith) is married to Lucy, a fictional character who entices him to investigate Belle because of the connection.—
Erin Jensen,
USA TODAY,
7 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
The premise itself is both deeply stupid and incredibly clever (the sweet spot, really).—
Erin Strecker,
IndieWire,
13 Feb. 2025
-
Some of the replies were the usual stupid snark on social media from people who thrive on being negative.—
Pete Grathoff,
Kansas City Star,
13 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
The bottom line: try not to be weather wise, climate foolish.—
Renee Winick,
Twin Cities,
7 Feb. 2025
-
Trump's plan for redevelopment of Gaza Strip is both foolish and unworkable, not a great combination.—
Baltimore Sun Editorial Board,
Baltimore Sun,
7 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
Tauruses will go crazy for something chic, functional, and soft to the touch.—
Meghan Rose,
Glamour,
9 Feb. 2023
-
Before getting into the chaos of episode 5, that episode 4 cliff hanger was crazy.—
Calie Schepp,
EW.com,
6 Feb. 2023
Adjective
-
Entertainment gossip and news from Newsweek's network of contributors Netflix is on a mad one this morning, posting teaser after release date after preview of their slate for the rest of the year, including a first look at Guillermo del Toro's Frankenstein starring Oscar Isaac.—
Thomas G. Moukawsher,
Newsweek,
30 Jan. 2025
-
The project stars Oscar Isaac as the titular mad scientist and Jacob Elordi as his monstrous creation, and also features Mia Goth and Christoph Waltz.—
Katcy Stephan,
Variety,
30 Jan. 2025
Thesaurus Entries Near screwball
Cite this Entry
“Screwball.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/screwball. Accessed 19 Feb. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share