as in silly
showing or marked by a lack of good sense or judgment
a zany plan to drive cross-country on a motorized scooter
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in clown
a comically dressed performer (as at a circus) who entertains with playful tricks and ridiculous behavior
hired a zany to entertain the children at the birthday party
Synonyms & Similar Words
2
as in eccentric
a person of odd or whimsical habits
one of the challenges of hosting a radio call-in program is preventing the zanies from completely taking over the discussion
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Examples Sentences
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Recent Examples of zany
A.a. Dowd, Vulture, 6 Jan. 2025
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
Hemsworth relishes his chance here to show another side of his acting chops, and the result is one of the funniest and zaniest villainous performances in recent memory.
—Ars Technica, 23 Dec. 2024
And so concludes another year and another zany season of The Masked Singer.
—Lauren Huff, EW.com, 19 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for zany 
Adjective
Bong being Bong — and judging from the colorfully zany trailer — this adaptation of an Edward Ashton novel will likely make class warfare a key theme.
—A.a. Dowd, Vulture, 6 Jan. 2025
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
Hemsworth relishes his chance here to show another side of his acting chops, and the result is one of the funniest and zaniest villainous performances in recent memory.
—Ars Technica, 23 Dec. 2024
And so concludes another year and another zany season of The Masked Singer.
—Lauren Huff, EW.com, 19 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for zany
Recent Examples of Synonyms for zany
Adjective
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The Couple Next Door The Bottom Line PG-13 partner-swapping upstaged by silly thriller subplots.—
Daniel Fienberg,
The Hollywood Reporter,
17 Jan. 2025
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In the unreliable reality the older Owen inhabits, his favorite childhood show was in fact silly, sloppy, and decidedly low-stakes.—
Samantha Allen,
Them,
14 Jan. 2025
Noun
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The story features Mauro, a clown who dreams of a carnival where a parade of revelers are celebrating his life.—
Joanne Shurvell,
Forbes,
6 Jan. 2025
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Both movies feature a killer clown, but while Joaquin Phoenix’s grinning menace suffers from delusions of grandeur and an unspecified mental illness, the hideous ghoul from hell in Terrifier known as Art hacks away at his victims with no discernible motivation beyond the grisly acts themselves.—
Eric Kohn,
The Hollywood Reporter,
6 Jan. 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
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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
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Lies, no matter how absurd, gain traction the more they're repeated.—
Michael Gfoeller And David H. Rundell,
Newsweek,
16 Jan. 2025
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In yet another absurd Elon Musk news story, it's been revealed that people are betting on how many times the owner of X will post on his platform in a week.—
Jibin Joseph,
PCMAG,
15 Jan. 2025
Noun
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But this harlequin moll can’t match Joker’s lunacy as either lawbreaker or musician.—
Armond White,
National Review,
29 Nov. 2024
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The doll, which is called the Witch Weaver, wears flared bell-bottoms, a gossamer harlequin blouse, gold waistcoat and crystal headpiece — taking inspiration from Reed’s signature design codes, personal style and even Lady Gaga.—
Violet Goldstone,
WWD,
21 Nov. 2024
Noun
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Not many non-performing contemporary songwriters are quite interesting enough to sustain a 90-minute documentary, but then, not many are Diane Warren, one of the great characters of modern Hollywood.—
Chris Willman,
Variety,
15 Jan. 2025
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There were children’s books filled with illustrations of Black and brown characters and, of course, a science fiction area that sat next to a shelf dedicated strictly to Butler’s works.—
Meagan Jordan,
Rolling Stone,
15 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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There are no more stupid questions and an open, supportive, and curious culture evolves.—
Darpan Munjal,
Forbes,
21 Jan. 2025
-
So if someone is crazy slash stupid enough to do that.—
Outside Online,
Outside Online,
16 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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The grade partly reflects the inevitable hot streak that would make a lower grade look foolish.—
Allan Mitchell,
The Athletic,
10 Jan. 2025
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In other words, the labor market and the economy remain strong and solid on their own, but could be undone by foolish economic policies that our politicians might implement.—
Harry Holzer,
Forbes,
10 Jan. 2025
Thesaurus Entries Near zany
Cite this Entry
“Zany.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/zany. Accessed 24 Jan. 2025.
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